


Human Connection

by CanaryCry



Series: Human Connection [1]
Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, DCU, DCU (Comics), Grayson (Comics)
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Awkwardness, Canonical Character Death, Dom/sub Undertones, Fake Marriage, Loneliness, M/M, Masturbation, Masturbation in Shower, Miscommunication, Mutual Pining, Oral Sex, Orgasm Delay/Denial, Porn With Plot, Requited Unrequited Love, Rimming, Smut, Spies & Secret Agents, Spyral, Undercover, Undercover Missions, Undercover as Married, Undercover as a Couple
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-28
Updated: 2015-09-23
Packaged: 2018-04-06 15:27:28
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 28,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4227054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CanaryCry/pseuds/CanaryCry
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Dick Grayson.” Caught off-guard, Dick nearly fell out the window, but a strong hand seized his bicep and pulled him back into the room. “Idiot.”</p><p>Agent 1 wasn't the romantic type. Agent 37 couldn't afford to be picky.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so hopefully this isn't terrible because I haven't written a huge amount of smut in the past and have been writing Birdflash pretty exclusively for a couple of years now.
> 
> I did a tiny bit of research to figure out what an appropriate name for Tiger's headwear would be, and it seems turban is accurate.
> 
> Any readers sensitive to ableist language should be aware that the word "idiot" does come up a few times in this fic because it is used quite often by Tiger in canon.

Dick had long since adapted to the fact that living in a building full of spies meant anyone could drop into his room at any time. Helena was the biggest offender. Agent 8 had at least waited for permission. Most of the time. Tiger—Agent 1—tended to keep to himself.

Well, he used to, anyway.

Dick was perched on the windowframe. Helena didn't like him doing it ever since the St Hadrian's girls had seen him there. He was usually careful enough that she never caught him. He'd had plenty of practice while communicating with Bruce.

“Dick Grayson.” Caught off-guard, Dick nearly fell out the window, but a strong hand seized his bicep and pulled him back into the room. “Idiot.”

Tiger. Of course. Dick couldn't disagree with his assessment. He should've been paying closer attention. Then again, it would've been nice if that man had knocked. Even Helena could manage that sometimes. But, then again _again_ , building full of spies and all that. Spies, a lot like Gotham vigilantes, often eschewed such basic manners whenever they became inconvenient. Dick wasn't exactly innocent in that regard himself.

Tiger still held onto his arm.

“So...” Dick began awkwardly. “Come here often?”

That made Tiger let go of him. With a look of pure disgust. The man's sense of humour was poor, to say the least. Which was kind of funny in its own, slightly terrifying way. The one time Dick recalled him doing anything even close to laughing was when they'd nearly gotten killed by that reconstructed paragon creature that had the powers of the Justice League. It had been one of those 'laugh or panic' situations that Dick was all too familiar with.

But actually getting a laugh out of him here? No way. Not that Dick was particularly invested in that. He was a little more concerned about why Tiger was in his room at all. He hadn't yelled at him (much) or dragged him out of the room yet, so it was unlikely they were in any immediate danger.

Tiger wasn't exactly the forthcoming type. Dick sighed. So he'd have to do this the hard way, then.

“Okay, Tiger. I'll bite. What are you doing in my room?”

“Agent 8.” So the guy was in a _I'm going to make you fight for every piece of information I give you_ kind of mood. Great.

“What about her?”

“You slept with her.”

“...Yes?” This wasn't exactly breaking news. Agent 8 had been dead for a while already. Not that Dick felt any better about how it had gone down.

“Why?” Tiger's face was hard to read, but Dick was something of an expert when it came to reading people. He didn't think the man was angry, not yet, but that was about as far as he could get.

Dick could feel the heat creeping up his neck, and he let a slightly nervous laugh escape him. “Well, you now. One thing leads to another and then... yeah. I still respected her after that. She was a good agent.”

Even if Dick had learned nothing else from working with the Gotham police force, he'd always remember how touchy officers tended to get when their partners were mistreated. The same went for his own family. He imagined even spies who lied for a living would feel the same way. Being alone with the top agent in Spyral, it was in his best interests to make sure Tiger knew he'd treated Agent 8 right. Given his part in her death, he probably deserved Tiger's rage, but that didn't make him eager to experience it.

“I know that,” Tiger said curtly. “This explains nothing.”

Dick shrugged. “I don't know what to tell you, man,” he said. “We were at the shooting range—”

“Where you pretended to be a terrible shot.”

“Well, okay. Yes. I lied. You lie. The Matron lies. We all lie. I don't like shooting people.”

“I noticed,” Tiger growled. “We all noticed. Alia would still be alive if you had done your job and shot the Old Gun when you had the opportunity.”

He had a point. Dick's refusal to compromise his principles had gotten Agent 8 killed. But Dick didn't have much here _except_ his principles. Bruce's principles. He'd just have to work harder to make sure nobody paid the price for his integrity ever again. He didn't expect anyone here to understand that.

“You're right,” Dick said. “I didn't shoot the Old Gun. I couldn't predict his actions, or Alia's. I did what I thought was right, and she died because of that. But I'm not a killer. Spyral knew that when they recruited me. I regret her death, but I don't regret sticking to my beliefs.”

Tiger shook his head. “You really are an idiot, Dick Grayson.”

“So I've heard,” Dick said dryly.

“You are also isolated,” Tiger went on to say. “Desperate for human connection.” Weird. Dick hadn't picked him as the psychoanalytical type.

“What can I say? I'm a people person.” Dick tried to keep his tone light. It didn't work. Nobody in Spyral had shown such an interest in digging into his brain, his deepest thoughts and desires. Alia—Agent 8—had come closer than most, but even then she was mostly doing it to make him stop being so squeamish about shooting people.

Tiger took a step, and another and another, forcing Dick to back up until he was sitting on his desk. “You're lonely, and you seized the scraps of affection Alia offered you. I see you, Dick Grayson, and I know what you were thinking when you slept with her.”

Tiger's hands fell on Dick's knees. Dick couldn't fully comprehend the turn this exchange had taken. Where was this man's anger for his dead partner? For Dick's concealment of his shooting ability? For Dick's refusal to conform to Spyral's operative style?

“You know Spyral's rules about fraternisation, yes?” Tiger said quietly. Dick nodded. He'd practically quoted them to Helena near the start of his involvement in the organisation. “Do you know how tightly they enforce them?”

“Not very,” Dick replied. “If you knew about Alia and me, they probably do, too.”

“They will not destroy what they can use,” Tiger replied. This closeness was really starting to freak Dick out. Was he going to die? Or was Tiger, as he suspected, honestly coming onto him right now?

“That doesn't surprise me.”

“They will use such information to punish their agents,” Tiger, very kindly, explained. “Please them, and they will turn a blind eye. Displease them, and prepare for their wrath. Understand?”

Dick nodded.

“Good.” Tiger stepped away towards the bed. The room was tiny; he was almost there already. Dick let out a breath, heart hammering away in his chest.

“Can we ditch the ambiguity here for a minute? I'm trying to decide if you want to kill me or have sex with me.” It sounded so conceited, phrased like that, but Dick figured he had to practice what he was preaching to have any hope of getting a straight answer here. Or not straight, as the case may be.

Tiger gazed down at him, eyes narrowed and full of fire, and Dick knew he was in a world of trouble. Not just because Tiger was a scary bastard, but also because that heated stare had him _feeling_ _things_ and he _so_ didn't need this right now when this guy was already convinced he was completely incompetent even without the ridiculous crush he could feel surfacing in his stomach.

“The Matron assigned you as my new partner,” Tiger said after a solid minute of staring. “This problem of yours could compromise an assignment.”

Dick raised an eyebrow. “ _Right_.”

Of course Dick would end up having a thing for the emotionally unavailable superspy in a profession that had already killed the last person he'd slept with. Just his luck.

Tiger's irritation just made his eyes burn hotter. He charged back over, Dick leaning backwards in response, and slammed both hands down on either side of him.

“Well?” he snapped. “Are you interested or not?”

Oh, Dick was definitely interested. He tended to find terrifying people who could kick his ass incredibly attractive, and Tiger certainly fit into that category. Whether a hookup with him was a good idea was a different matter entirely.

Tiger's cheeks were a little flushed, and Dick did feel a little bad for putting him on the spot like that. He got the sense embarrassment wasn't something he was used to experiencing. Putting him out of his misery would be so much easier if he could make up his mind whether to pursue this or not.

Sure, Tiger was a very attractive man. But he was a part of Spyral, and Dick wasn't exactly loyal to them. Not to mention he'd watched the last person he'd slept with—Alia—die in the field. It... was probably better to keep this particular can of worms firmly shut.

“I don't think it's a good idea,” Dick finally said. “You... um... you're very attractive and I definitely thought about it, but...”

“Fine.” Tiger headed straight for the door without a backward glance. Dick definitely felt for him in that moment. Even renowned superspies had to be a little hurt when they got rejected like that. Hopefully this wouldn't affect their working relationship too badly. Tiger was a professional in a field where emotional connections were often put aside for the sake of the job, after all. But still. Had to hurt.

If this meant Tiger was going to call him an idiot more often than usual... well, he could cope with that.

* * *

Dick tried to get some sleep, but what Tiger had said was trapped in his mind. He was cut off from everyone he knew and loved. The only communication he had with anyone was through transmissions with Bruce that were filled with code words and ambiguities and never, ever ran as long as he would've liked. Everyone else thought he was dead. He hadn't seen, spoken to, or even  _touched_ any of them in so long. He was parched, starved for affection. He'd always craved it, even as a kid, and it hadn't gotten better as he'd grown older.

Maybe he should've taken Tiger up on his offer. Sex wasn't the same as intimacy and it was a band-aid solution to the emptiness this separation left inside him at best, but he couldn't exactly afford to be picky in this place.

Men like Tiger didn't just offer to do things they didn't want to do. There was clearly an interest in play here. An interest Dick certainly shared, but didn't know how to pursue without risking them both. He couldn't take another loss like Agent 8.

He couldn't afford to get attached to people in this place. Anyone could discover his communications with Batman, or simply decide to betray him for their own reasons. If that happened, he couldn't afford to hesitate. This mission—and his own life—came first. He knew that. He knew he was already getting too attached to Helena. Hopefully Tiger's general aloofness and predilection for intellectual insults would stop that from happening here.

It was just sex, right? People had sex without feelings all the time. Spend the night together, leave all emotions in the room come morning. It could be so easy, if he just let go of his unease.

Fuck it.

Dick threw off the covers and hunted for his shoes. He didn't know where Tiger's room was, which was probably by design, but if he was mad enough he could still be awake. Probably training. St Hadrian's had a number of training areas reserved for Spyral agents. He'd probably be in one of those.

Dick found his shoes and a shirt and slipped out of the dorm room. The students had a curfew, but they were in other wings of the building. The agents weren't quite as tightly restricted, though they rarely went anywhere without the higher-ups knowing and deciding whether or not to let them continue.

He heard the thumps before he entered the training room. Tiger was going to town on a punching bag on the far side of the room. He was fast. Strong. Vicious. Powerful.

He also picked up on Dick's presence by the door pretty quickly. He didn't stop hitting the bag, but his strikes landed harder, his breaths gasping louder. Dick stepped further inside, closing the door behind him.

“You don't have to talk to me,” he said. “I know I embarrassed you earlier. You were right. I have been feeling isolated. I'm not used to being separated from the people I care about for this long.”

Tiger stopped punching. “I am not interested in your life story.”

“Right. Sorry.”

“Or your apologies.”

“Okay.”

The two of them just stood at opposite ends of the room, Tiger still facing the punching bag, Dick still watching him. Maybe this hadn't been such a great idea. Tiger was clearly in the mood to lash out whenever he felt an emotion, and Dick was feeling a little too soft tonight, a little too vulnerable, to handle that.

“Well?” Tiger said, and it was a quieter, gentler echo of his earlier request. “Are you interested or not?”

“Sure,” Dick replied. “Where to?”

Tiger crossed the room and opened the door. “Your room is no secret. Mine is.”

“So, my room, then.” Dick followed him out of the room and back to his own. Tiger's fingers dug into Dick's hips as he shut the door behind them, setting the lock into place. Not that the lock would do anything to stop any Spyral agents from entering if they were determined enough. Well, the locked door was enough of a warning so if they saw anything they couldn't unsee, it'd be their own damn fault.

Tiger's teeth grazed his neck, and it suddenly hit him what was about to happen. What he'd agreed to let happen. This man... this was Spyral's top agent. A legend within the organisation. A terrifyingly precise and lethal man. And Dick was about to sleep with him.

Tiger paused, sensing his hesitation. Dick turned—Tiger released his hips—and tugged the man in close, capturing his lips in what he'd expected to be a brief peck at best. Tiger shoved him up against the door and a tongue was in his mouth before he could blink. Bodies pressed together. Tiger was all solid muscle and unrelenting strength. No surprise there.

Dick's knees parted to make room for Tiger's thigh, which pressed firmly up against him. Dick came very close to whining into the other man's mouth, but managed to open it up into a moan at the last second. He didn't need the embarrassment.

That damn thigh rubbed against his cock until it was good and hard, and then Tiger shoved him onto the bed, pouncing upon him and tearing off his shirt before Dick could react. Dick's apprehension was replaced with excitement, as Tiger took it upon himself to undress him.

Tiger shoved Dick's hands away when he made to return the favour. He undressed himself—turban, shirt, pants, underwear—and pushed Dick down onto his back. Dick caught himself staring at the scarred, rough flesh that screamed _danger_ but, at the same time, only drove his arousal higher.

Tiger caught his eye, and that severe expression of his softened a touch. “You can still say no.”

“I'm okay. Just... admiring the view.”

Tiger just frowned at him before ignoring the comment. Being naked had done nothing for his sense of humour. Which was just sad.

Sitting back between Dick's legs, Tiger fished a few items from his discarded pants pockets. Condoms and lube. Well, that was a relief. Dick didn't exactly have those lying around here.

“Do you always carry those?” Dick asked, mostly just to be a shit but he had to admit he was a little bit curious.

“No.”

“Just when you're hoping to get lucky, then? Lucky me.”

Tiger unscrewed the lid of the lube container. “Do you ever stop talking?”

“Not if I can help it.”

“Idiot,” Tiger muttered, with a hint of affection, maybe. Dick didn't want to read too much into it in case he was imagining things. “Now shut up and relax.”

Dick held back a laugh that turned into a snort. “Yes, sir.”

Tiger slowly inserted a slicked finger inside him. Dick was content to lie back and enjoy it. The slow pace was nice and all, but he did hope the other man wasn't going so slow because he didn't think Dick could handle anything faster.

He also really hoped Helena didn't feel like doing one of her late night visits he swore were planned purely to catch him off-guard. He could probably handle anyone else since they'd probably be scarred for life themselves, but Helena? She'd never let him live it down. It wasn't every day you walked in a room to find your former partner lying naked with his current partner's fingers up his ass, as crass as that phrasing was.

Tiger's fingers brushed a sensitive spot, making him twitch with pleasure. He relaxed back down, watching through half-lidded eyes as the man's intense focus was turned onto making him feel good.

Before long, Tiger pulled his fingers out and reached for a condom.

“Safety first,” Dick said. “I like it.”

“Would you like me to find a better use for that mouth?”

Dick sat up on his elbows, smirking like the smug little asshole he had been in the Robin suit all those years ago. “I wouldn't mind it.”

Tiger huffed out some air in what sounded suspiciously like a concealed laugh. “Another time. Lie down.”

Tiger hovered over him, pushing slowly inside. Carefully. Even then, the stretch hurt. This was bigger than a few fingers.

Dick put his hands on Tiger's shoulders. “Okay, wait.”

Tiger paused. “Are you—?”

“I'm fine,” Dick assured him. “Just need a minute.” He shifted his hips a little, noticing the brief twitch in Tiger's otherwise impassive face. He wondered if he could get the man to lose a little more of that control before the night was over. He also wondered if that was such a good idea. Probably not.

The aches finally went away, and the sensation of Tiger's cock inside him started to feel... nice. “Okay.” Dick shifted again, gasping a little at the cascade of pleasure it brought him. “Go.”

Tiger pushed in further, stopping a few more times at Dick's request, until his body finally stopped protesting. Then he lifted Dick's legs and thrust deep, slowly at first. Dick wrapped his legs around Tiger's waist and dug blunt nails into his arms, digging deeper as Tiger picked up the pace until Dick's head was thrown back in pleasure and the only sounds he could make were strangled gasps.

Harder. Harder. Faster. _Faster_. Tiger braced his hands against the thin headboard, arms stretched taut and bulging with muscle, his entire body slick with sweat. It was truly a sight to behold, and Dick, pinned as he was, could only squeeze his legs tighter, dig his nails deeper, move his hips to deepen the man's frenzied thrusts.

The end was approaching. Dick could feel it build, throbbing and hot. He could barely remember to breathe.

Tiger's hands flew from the headboard and he gripped Dick's ass with bruising strength, driving himself deeper and harder until there was nowhere left to go.

And Dick came with a shuddering gasp, his legs squeezing as his cock twitched and spilled onto both their stomachs. Tiger thrust a few more times before pressing in close with a groan. Dick felt the pulses inside him, and his own cock twitched a few more times from where it lay in its own mess.

Tiger caught Dick's lips in a dirty, deep, biting kiss. Dick's brain was effectively scrambled.

Some time later, they separated, lying side-by-side in the ruined sheets. Dick's breaths still came in gasps, and Tiger's eyes were closed.

“Nothing leaves this room,” Tiger said once Dick could breathe quietly again. “We are professionals. This will not affect our work. Understood?”

“Understood,” Dick breathed.

“Good. Come here.” Tiger pulled him closer and pressed up against his back. Dick hadn't taken him for much of a cuddler, even after sex, but all sorts of preconceptions had been turned on their heads tonight. It was just one more to add to the pile.

Morning was going to be awkward as hell. But tonight, Dick was going to soak up every little scrap of affection he could get.

“So, what are we now?” Dick asked. “I'd almost say friends with benefits, but we're not exactly friends so...”

“Dick Grayson. Shut up.” Tiger gave him a squeezed that belied the harshness of his words.

But Dick couldn't resist pushing his luck just a tiny bit more. “Am I still an idiot?”

“Yes. You are. Now go to sleep.”

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Helena sends Dick and Tiger on a mission together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I finally had a brain-spark to continue this. A lot of ideas in here are from a post prettydickgrayson made on tumblr about these two having to pretend they're married for a mission, but I have tweaked things a bit.
> 
> There's a little bit of ignorance from characters about Muslims in this chapter.

Dick woke early the next morning when Tiger slipped out of bed. Dick rolled over sleepily, eyes still closed.

“Where are you going?” he mumbled.

A rustle of fabric. “To pray,” Tiger replied. “Go back to sleep.”

“Are you coming back?”

“No.”

“Oh. Okay.”

A hand brushed Dick's cheek. “Sleep.”

The door squeaked, and then he was gone. Dick curled up under the covers against the early morning chill. His brain wasn't working so well yet, but even now a touch of dread was creeping into his stomach. Had last night been it? Had a one-night stand with Spyral's top agent been worth the ultimate fallout when his betrayal of the organisation finally came to light? What if it was more than a one-night stand? What if this continued? The fallout would be even bigger. Tiger wasn't somebody to be messed with, and Dick could not afford to get attached to him in any way, which inevitably happened whenever he slept with someone. He just could not keep things casual.

Dick shoved his face into the pillow and managed to snatch a few more hours of sleep, punctuated by weird and unsettling dreams he could no longer remember as soon as he woke around lunchtime.

A hot shower washed away the evidence of the previous night, and some of his unease. He still kind of wanted to hide when he saw Helena at lunch. She probably knew what had happened. Secrets were a rare commodity in this place. He supposed it wasn't the worst secret she could find out about him, but it was mortifying all the same.

He had no idea what he was going to do if he ran into Tiger, but he needn't have worried. Nobody ran into Tiger by accident. The man would only be found if he wanted to be, and after the third day of nothing, it became clear to Dick that he didn't. He wasn't sure how he felt about that. He hadn't taken Tiger as the type to hide from awkward situations, but there were a lot of things Dick didn't know about him.

In any case, he was completely unprepared when, a week later, Helena called him into her office. Tiger was already there. Dick felt the anxiety grip his stomach, but fought to not let it show on his face.

“I have a mission for you,” Helena said. She was facing the window, the sunlight silhouetting her frame in a manner that had to be deliberate. “We've lost a number of agents over the last few weeks and have finally identified the killer. He knows we're onto him and has gone into hiding in a suburban neighbourhood. I need the two of you to pose as a married couple and infiltrate the community. There, you will locate the killer, let him lower his guard and then apprehend him. Unless an incident occurs that requires an immediate response, you will spend at least one month earning the trust of the people.”

“Wouldn't a heterosexual couple be easier to integrate?” Dick asked.

“Possibly, but all my female agents are either occupied or have tangled with the killer before,” Helena replied. “You two are the only available agents he hasn't encountered. I doubt your new neighbours will give you too much trouble if you play your parts well. Some of them may, in fact, be keen to accept you if they see you as non-threatening. Most people who are not outright bigots like to think they'll accept anyone, as long as that anyone is not too markedly different from themselves. So find your manners, boys, and use them.”

Tiger grumbled under his breath.

Helena rolled her eyes at him. “Dick, I want you in charge of integration. Tiger, I expect you to follow his lead.”

“Is this charade really necessary?” asked Tiger.

“It's the safest option,” Helena replied. “A newlywed couple is less likely to raise eyebrows than an individual. Cover story aside, the man you're after is dangerous. I could send Dick in alone and let him be his usual charming self, but even if he were to pull it off, he would need backup when it came to finishing the mission.” Dick wasn't sure if she was being sarcastic about his charm or not.

“Understood,” Tiger muttered.

This was going to be torture.

* * *

They made the trip the next morning. Tiger was silent on the plane ride, and on the drive from the airport to their house.

The house was... pretty, Dick supposed. A nice little green lawn full of shrubs and flowers, bordered by a white picket fence on a cul-de-sac full of children playing. The house itself was two storeys of wood, painted a soft cream, with window frames that were painted white.

Dick parked the car in the garage. Their people had already been by to furnish the house, so they only had their own bags to contend with. Tiger wordlessly took most of them, leaving Dick with an armful of smaller ones and a free hand to unlock the front door.

“Hello, neighbour!” A middle-aged woman with a small terrier on a leash waved to the pair from the sidewalk.

“Hi,” Dick replied, turning on the charm while Tiger quietly let himself into the house. Dick set his bags by the door and headed out to shake the woman's hand.

“Gloria Smith,” the woman said, taking the hand Dick offered her.

“Richard Woods,” Dick replied. “Mr Quiet And Mysterious is my husband, Tahir. He's shy.”

Gloria chuckled. “Oh, we'll pull him out of his shell soon enough.”

“Careful. He bites.”

Gloria let out a squawk of a laugh, startling her dog. “Oh, you are too precious. You two must come for dinner tonight. Is your husband Muslim?”

Dick spotted Tiger grabbing the bags by the door and disappearing back inside. “Yes, he is.”

“Okay, no problem. I'll get down to the store and make sure I find the halal meat. Don't you worry about that. I live right next door. See you tonight.”

“Sure. See you tonight.”

Dick watched Gloria continue her walk. Well, that was easy. Dick headed inside and found Tiger unpacking their bags in the bedroom.

“That was Gloria,” Dick told him. “She's invited us over to dinner.”

Tiger paused in his packing.

“She's going to make sure she gets the right meat,” Dick assured him. “It'll be fine. All going well, she'll introduce us to the rest of the neighbourhood. She seems like the community mother hen type.”

“Good.” Tiger folded a shirt and stuck it on a pile of them. “This is not my speciality.”

“I noticed. Fortunately, I'm charming enough for the both of us.”

“Let us hope the common people agree with you, because I do not.”

Dick snorted. “All right, let's get everything stored away.”

They finished unpacking and putting their clothes away in silence. The sex thing still hadn't been addressed, and Dick had no idea when or even if that was going to happen.

There was a knock on the door. Dick went to answer to find more new neighbours coming to greet them. With food.

“Welcome to the neighbourhood,” said the elderly woman in front. “I'm Margaret. This is my husband, Herb.” She gestured to the bespectacled white-haired man beside her. “This is my daughter, Julia, and her husband, John.” The middle-aged couple at the back waved. “Their children are... well, they're somewhere around here. My other daughter, Amelia, is watching them.”

“Nice to meet you all,” Dick said. “Come in.” He let them pass. “We don't have much to offer at the moment, but I think we've got some teabags around here somewhere. And we should have enough plates and cutlery to cut up that pie.” He led them into the dining room and settled them in. Tiger came from the kitchen with plates and cutlery ready to go.

“I found the kettle,” Tiger said.

“You read my mind.” Dick kissed his cheek. “This is my husband, Tahir.” He rattled off their guest's names and took the plates to set the table. “Gloria invited us to dinner tonight. Any skeletons in the closet we should watch out for?”

There was a round of soft laughter at the table.

“Oh, nothing too terrible,” said Margaret.

“Unless you're terrified of committees,” added Herb. “Then you may have some trouble.”

“I'll protect you,” Dick said to Tiger, who rolled his eyes.

“Richard, you cannot protect your own shin from the furniture.”

“It was pitch-black and it was one time, okay?” Dick replied, playing along. “You thought it was hilarious.”

Tiger sighed. “Yes, keep telling yourself that.”

Dick laughed at his irritation and cut up the pie, putting a slice on each plate. “Pie always tastes better when it's shared, don't you think?”

“Oh, absolutely,” said Margaret. Dick and Tiger sat down with the guests and they all dug in.

“So, what do you do, Richard?” John asked amidst the clatter of cutlery.

“I'm a gym teacher,” Dick replied. “I also teach Math classes as a substitute when necessary.”

“You must be the new teacher starting on Monday,” said Julia. “I'm an admin. Maybe I'll see you there.”

“I look forward to it.”

“What do you do, Tahir?” John asked.

“I, uh...”

Dick gave him an _I'll handle this_ look and Tiger went off into the kitchen to take care of the kettle.

“He's not working at the moment,” Dick replied. They had tried finding a job that would suit Tiger, but their options had been limited and Helena had balked at the idea of putting him in a situation where he actually had to be nice to people. And not shoot them. Working with children was especially out of the question. So it had just been easier to let him be the househusband.

“Oh, well, that's not so unusual,” Margaret said. “I stopped working after I married Herb. I found raising my children full-time to be far more satisfying.”

Tiger came back with the kettle and poured boiling water into mugs, dropping teabags into each before heading back to grab the milk and sugar.

“I stopped working when I became pregnant,” Julia added.

“Like mother, like daughter,” said John. Julia elbowed him.

Tiger returned with the milk and sugar and everyone tailored their drinks to their liking. Tiger took his straight, Dick noted, and drank it while it was still scalding hot.

“Are you two planning to have children?” Margaret asked. Tiger choked on his tea.

“We don't know yet,” Dick replied, thumping Tiger on the back. “Once we've settled in here, maybe we'll think about it.”

“There's no rush,” said Margaret. “You two have years ahead of you.”

“And no biological clock telling you to get a move on,” Julia added. She and her mother tittered.

Everyone finished their and tea and the guests soon left to round up their children for afternoon tea. Tiger visibly relaxed in their absence, slumping in his seat as Dick cleared the table.

“You did fine,” Dick assured him. “It'll get easier once all the introductions are over.”

“If you say so,” Tiger muttered. Dick squeezed his shoulder and went into the kitchen to wash the dishes.

“You've got a few hours to prepare for the dinner,” Dick called to him, only to find he'd entered the kitchen with some cutlery Dick had forgotten. “Oh, there you are. Hello.”

Tiger deposited the knifes and forks on the unwashed plates, placed his hands on Dick's hips and kissed him on the temple. Dick's stomach definitely jumped at that, but he did what he could to keep calm on the outside.

“Getting some practise in?”

“Yes.” Tiger squeezed his hips once and let go, leaving him alone in the kitchen.

Dick braced his soapy hands against the counter and let out a shaky breath. This was going to be a long month.

* * *

Gloria made spaghetti and meatballs and Dick got acquainted with her husband and two children. Tiger sat beside him, quiet but non-threatening, which was probably the best they were going to get for the moment.

“So, how old are you Emily?” Dick asked the older child.

“Fifteen,” Emily replied.

“Are you in high school yet?”

“Just started.”

“Nice. Do you go to the local school?”

“Yeah. Where else would I go?”

Dick shrugged. “Good question. Anyway, I'm teaching gym and available for substituting Math classes, so you'll probably see me around.”

“I can't wait,” Emily murmured. Her dad, Steve, gave her a look. Dick let it all slide. Fifteen wasn't a nice age to be for most people. A little backtalk was expected. Even Tim had been a bit of a shit at that age.

“So, Braden,” Dick said, “how old are you?”

“Twelve and a half.”

“Because that extra half is _so_ important,” Emily teased.

“Emily,” Steve warned. “We have guests.”

Gloria brought the pot of spaghetti to the table and placed it in the centre. “All right, everyone. Dig in.”

Emily filled her bowl. “So, Tahir, was it? You're the reason Mum was going on about getting halal meat for tonight, right?”

“Yes,” Tiger replied. He was very calm, actually.

“Emily, mind your manners,” said Gloria.

“I'm just curious. But like, don't Muslims really hate gay--”

“Emily!” Steve interrupted.

“Not all Muslims are the same,” Tiger said, still calm.

“People of any faith will always have different opinions on certain matters,” Dick added. “This is one of them.”

“Right. Sorry. Didn't mean to be rude.”

“Are you going to behave?” Gloria asked her daughter. “Or will you have to eat in your room?”

“I'll behave,” Emily muttered. “I didn't mean anything by it.”

“The next rude thing out of your mouth, and you're in your room for the rest of the night,” said Steve.

“Gotcha.”

“I'm so sorry about that, Tahir,” said Gloria.

“It's fine,” Tiger replied. “I've heard worse.”

“I don't think that came out quite as comforting as you intended, hon,” Dick said. Braden snorted into his soda.

The rest of the evening was a little less adversarial. Emily and Braden went off to do their own thing once dinner had been eaten.

“I'm an English teacher,” Steve said while they were discussing work over some tea Gloria had brewed. “Emily hates it.”

Dick chuckled. “Naturally. My dad isn't a teacher, but he always donated a lot of money to my school and got invited to _everything_. Jeez, my face is going red just thinking about it.”

“Do you have any embarrassing school stories, Tahir?” Steve asked, very obviously trying to include Tiger in the conversation.

“I grew up in Afghanistan,” Tiger replied. “I would rather not talk about it.”

“Oh. Explains the accent, I suppose.”

Neither Steve nor Gloria seemed to know how to maintain the conversation after that, so it fell to Dick to save the day.

“So, Gloria,” Dick started, latching onto the first topic he could think of, “what exactly did you put in that sauce? It was marvellous.”

“Old family recipe,” Gloria replied. “I'll have to teach you.”

“That would be wonderful. Thank you. Tahir and I aren't exactly wizards in the kitchen.”

“I'll grab a copy of the recipe.” Gloria got up and headed to a shelf in the corner of the room. “You'll have to host your own party once you know a few more people.”

“I look forward to giving it a shot,” Dick replied. “What do you say, hon? Wanna try cooking something other than toast for once?”

“You burn toast,” Tiger replied. “Perhaps you should try mastering that first.”

Dick snorted. “Sometimes I swear you actually have a sense of humour.”

“Sometimes I swear you know me, and then you say things like that.”

Dick was going to pee himself if he kept laughing. He kissed Tiger's forehead and went to use the bathroom before that happened. Wetting oneself wasn't exactly the best impression one could make on new neighbours.

* * *

Dick and Tiger returned home later that evening, hand-in-hand. Dick had a copy of Gloria's family recipe tucked in his pocket.

“After we got past the early awkwardness, that wasn't so bad,” Dick said, unlocking their front door. “Are you okay with everything that happened?”

“It will take more than an adolescent's ignorance to hurt my feelings,” Tiger replied coolly. They stepped inside and shut the door.

“Well, if you're okay...” Dick yawned into his hand. “I'm gonna get some sleep. Coming?”

Tiger followed him to the bedroom, letting Dick use the en suite first, which was nice of him. They ended up lying on opposite sides of the bed, as far from each other as possible. Which wasn't ideal. That one night together had soothed his loneliness for a time, but it was ever creeping back. He wouldn't have objected to a little cuddling tonight, if he was perfectly honest with himself.

“So, are we...?” Dick kind of wanted to address their one-night stand, but was this really the best time?

“Yes?”

“Eh. Never mind.”

“If you insist.”

“Okay. Gotta ask about something else.”

“Spit it out.”

“The level of affection we're showing in front of people,” Dick said, “is that too awkward for you?”

“It's fine. We barely do anything.”

“You've got a point. We're probably not doing enough, really.”

Tiger sighed. “Okay. We will try to be more... affectionate.”

Dick cackled into his pillow. “Oh, we're going to be _disgusting_. Just you wait.”

“I can barely contain my excitement,” Tiger said dully. Dick tried not to feel hurt by his lack of enthusiasm, but he didn't really succeed. It seemed to him that Tiger was content to pretend they'd never slept together. Dick wasn't good at that sort of thing. He was an emotional person. He got attached to people.

This was going to end in tears, he just knew it.

 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dick and Tiger continue to suck at feelings as they both work on their new roles in this sham of a marriage.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's a bit shorter than I really planned, but I like where it ended and didn't want to kill the mood of the chapter by trying to add more so I'm posting it.

Dick's first day of work was on Monday. He spent most of the day assisting one of the more senior gym teachers and took one Math class. The kids were fairly well-behaved. They seemed to respond well to him not being a domineering ass, which was always nice. He spotted Julia and Steve during the day and waved at them in passing.

He returned home that afternoon to find Tiger tending the front garden. He'd clearly been out here a while, his shirt clinging to his muscled body with sweat as he gently pruned a rose bush. His face was, strangely, completely free of his usual frown. It was simply odd to see someone so heavily trained in violence, so often filled with rage, gently coax life out of something so delicate as a rose bush. Dick also rather appreciated the view of the man's ass he got as he bent over the bush in question.

“How was work?” Tiger asked, setting his secateurs aside. Dick took that as his cue to approach, waving at Steve as he passed by with Emily and Braden.

“It went well. No major incidents.” Dick gave Tiger a quick kiss on the lips. “How's your day been?”

“Boring.”

“I can imagine. We need to find you a hobby. Aside from gardening. There's only so much you can garden, after all. Perhaps knitting?”

Tiger scoffed and started to pack up his tools. “I watched the neighbours. Discreetly.”

“I'd sincerely hope so. The last thing I need is Gloria calling me to tell me my husband's being a creeper. We've got one of those in Gotham already, thanks.”

“Nobody is worth watching,” Tiger continued. “They have to be the least interesting people I have ever spied on.”

“Of course they are, _sweetheart_.” Dick stepped in close, winding his arms around Tiger's neck, and pulled him into a proper kiss that Tiger quickly returned, his free hand pressing against the small of Dick's back. “Most of these people aren't criminals,” he continued when they pulled back to breathe. “The worst they'll get in their lives is a traffic violation.”

“This is the worst mission I have ever taken part in.”

“Aww. That hurts my feelings.”

“Good.”

“Ouch.” He kissed Tiger's nose and stepped away. “Now, I'm hungry. Are you hungry? Let's find something to eat.”

“Margaret brought sandwiches for lunch,” Tiger said, following Dick inside. “I left some for you.”

“Aw, so you do care.”

Tiger pulled the plate of sandwiches out of the fridge and grabbed one before heading out of the kitchen again. “I need to bathe. Eat the rest.”

“Thank you, Margaret,” Dick said under his breath as he bit into the nearest little triangle. He was surprised he was this hungry, given he hadn't actually done all that much today. He'd spent most of his gym classes clicking a timer as the kids ran laps in front of him. He'd almost wanted to join them. He hadn't done any exercise yesterday, which was unusual for him. He always functioned best when he had a chance to move.

There was a gym with a swimming pool near the town centre. Swimming wasn't quite the same as flying, but it came closer than most things. Maybe he'd invite Tiger... and that had absolutely nothing to do with wanting to see the guy in a swimsuit.

Okay, maybe it did have a little bit to do with that.

Tiger soon emerged from his shower, his hair still a little damp. Dick washed Margaret's dish and set it aside to dry.

“Wanna hit the gym?” Dick asked. “I feel like swimming.”

“I was about to ask you the same question.”

“Sweet. Let's go.”

They were out the door within minutes. Julia was watching her children play in the cul-de-sac.

“'Afternoon,” she said. “Going anywhere interesting?”

“Swimming,” Dick replied.

“Oh, you might see John. He works at the gym.”

“I'll keep an eye out,” Dick said. “Stay safe. I'll try not to run anyone over.”

Julia laughed and ushered her kids off the road while Dick backed the car out of the garage.

“Do people usually laugh when you talk about running people over?” said Tiger.

“Yes, because I'm hilarious.” Dick finished backing out and slowly drove down the street. With school having just let out, children were everywhere.

“...No. You are not.”

“You wound me.”

“I can if you like.”

“Pass.”

The traffic was a little heavy for a suburban area, though it had nothing on Gotham's school run. You weren't truly a Gothamite until a soccer mum cussed you out five different ways for matching the (admittedly slow) speed of the car in front of you.

Dick managed to snag a rare parking spot near the gym. There were a few afterschool classes starting soon, but Dick had made sure there would be a free swimming pool for recreational purposes. It would probably be filled with children, but there were certainly worse things to fill a pool and Dick had witnessed at least twelve of them in the past. Acid was rather high up on the list, along with dead bodies and human waste. Ah, memories.

“Hm,” Tiger said.

“Is that a good _hm_ or a bad _hm_.”

“I am thinking.”

“Ah, so it's a pained _hm_.”

“Idiot,” Tiger muttered.

“I'm all ears, husband dearest.”

“I may have to avoid the swimming today. Public pools can be... difficult.”

“For you personally, or...”

“You intend to ask about my religion? The answer is yes.” Tiger opened his car door. “I will be in the gym instead. Join me when you are finished.”

“Sure thing.” Dick grabbed his duffel bag from the backseat and headed into the building. It was sad he wouldn't get to see Tiger all wet and... well, he had a perfectly vivid imagination that could make up for it.

Watching Tiger train was just as much of a turn-on, anyway.

* * *

Tiger trained alone in the gym for a time, flitting between the cardio equipment and the weights as the mood struck him. There was little of real substance here to challenge him, but a sub-par workout was preferable to none at all. John found him half and hour into his workout, which, though he was useful for helping him spot on the bench-press, stretched his social abilities to the limit. Small talk was not his forte.

Fortunately, Dick soon arrived to save him from the torment. Only to bring with him the other kind that had been dogging him ever since this mission began.

Dick was still damp from his swim—or did he shower before coming here?—and he wore the most ridiculous workout clothing known to man. The tiniest shorts. The baggiest sleeveless shirt that exposed large tracts of his sides. It was, quite frankly, embarrassing to watch. And also slightly arousing but Tiger was never going to admit that, not even to save his own life.

John helped Tiger set the barbell down. “Hi, Richard.”

“Hey, John.”

“Interesting fashion decisions you've made there.”

Dick, the fool, just laughed. “What can I say? I have an eclectic sense of fashion.”

“Or a lack of one,” Tiger added, sitting up. Dick's attire was even more ridiculous when viewed from the correct angle.

“If you married me for my fashion sense, you're going to be sorely disappointed, hon.”

Tiger really wished he'd stop using petnames for him. It was mortifying to realise just how much he liked hearing it.

“You haven't seen my ice cream tie yet, have you?” Dick continued. “Oh, man, you're in for a shock. My brother bought it for my birthday as a joke a few years ago. Joke's on him, though. I actually like it.”

“The thought terrifies me,” Tiger replied dully. His lack of enthusiasm never seemed to deter Dick, though he honestly didn't mind listening to the man babble. Most of the time. He had a talent for babbling in a way that kept you entertained, even as your face is forever stuck in your palm at the ridiculousness of it all. Dick certainly hadn't learned that from Batman, who, by all accounts, didn't even know how to smile.

“I'll leave you two alone,” John said, winking as he departed. Tiger's mortification deepened, if that were even possible. Even Dick seemed a little flustered, but, of course, he shook it off almost immediately.

“I can spot you, if you like,” he offered. Tiger nodded and lay back down on the bench and continued working the barbell.

Dick still smelled a little like chlorine, and a lot like soap. He chattered about meaningless things as he watched to make sure Tiger didn't decapitate himself with this thing. Most of Tiger's focus was indeed dedicated to not dying in the most embarrassing of ways possible with a barbell that didn't involve intimate areas of the body, but he couldn't help but think of Dick at the same time.

Things were strange between them since the night he'd barged into the man's room and, eventually, convinced him to sleep with him. A lot of that was his own fault, Tiger knew, and he had avoided Dick after that, leaving the issue unresolved.

But how on earth was he supposed to admit his feelings ran a little deeper than the superficial? Dick took great pains to act the role of loving husband, but there were moments when Tiger could just _sense_ his discomfort. Dick had many admirers, including Tiger's late partner, Alia. The emotionally-stunted superspy had to be very far down his list of potential long-term lovers. Tiger was self-aware enough for that, at least.

This line of thought was giving him a headache. Dick Grayson was beautiful, offensively so, with a frustratingly bubbly personality to match. Men like him were not interested in long-term relationships with men like Tiger. Men like Dick needed someone who could be as open with him as he was with them. Tiger did not fit the mould at all, and even considering the notion at all was foolish.

All that being said, Tiger was a professional. He had licence to act the loving husband to this man for a month, and he was going to do it. And like it.

If the kiss he gave Dick after he was finished working out was a little deeper than he'd planned, that was his secret to keep.

Spots of red sat high in Dick's cheeks after that kiss. Tiger could feel the heat coming off him as their cheeks brushed together afterwards.

“You're a fast learner,” Dick whispered.

Tiger almost laughed at the cruel twists his life had taken to bring them both to this point. “Yes. Yes I am.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The strain of the mission starts to wear on Dick. Tiger takes it upon himself to rectify that.

Every day, being affectionate came easier to Tiger. Dick could feel the tension falling away from the both of them. It made keeping the charade so much easier when he wasn't the only person carrying it. He no longer fell into bed, exhausted from the weight placed upon him while Tiger floundered nearby but didn't quite manage to help him lift it.

But then, two weeks in, things changed.

Dick came home from work with the mother of all headaches and a sandpaper throat. It seemed every gym and math teacher in the entire school had called off sick, leaving Dick to deal with the most unruly classes while all the other substitutes seemed to get the well-behaved kids. He hated yelling at children. And, by God, had he yelled. He'd yelled until his throat refused to let him yell anymore.

Dick stepped out of the car, slamming his door a little harder than was really warranted. He had over forty tests to grade, since the teacher meant to grade them had managed to contract tonsillitis, but all he wanted to do was nap for a week.

Tiger set down his gardening tools as Dick stepped onto the lawn. Before Dick could say anything—he probably would've just started complaining about the sun in his eyes anyway—Tiger had taken his bag off him, pulled him close with his free hand and smashed their lips together.

Dick's eyes slid shut and he felt everything around him just... melt away. He returned the kiss, the pair fighting back and forth for control until Dick finally gave up and let Tiger's tongue slip gently into his mouth. His whole body was made of jelly and he clung to Tiger, lest he fall right on his ass in front of the whole neighbourhood.

By the time Tiger pulled back, Dick was seeing stars. He rested his head against Tiger's shoulder, letting the man support a good chunk of his weight.

“Bad day?” Tiger asked.

“How'd you guess?” Dick murmured.

“Steve arrived before you did.”

“That explains it.” Dick's final class had been in the room right next to Steve's. The man could've heard him from the moon. He was just grateful none of the children he'd had to discipline belonged to any of his neighbours. That would've been awkward.

Tiger rubbed his back. “Children,” he muttered with disgust. Dick snorted, which hurt his throat. “Will this affect the mission?”

“Unlikely. Most teachers yell. I hadn't planned to be one of them, but here we are. You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain.”

Tiger didn't dignify that with a response. “We are going inside now,” he said slowly, and Dick was at least seventy per cent certain he was making fun of him. “There, you will lie down and I will bring you some tea for your throat.”

Dick half-heartedly patted Tiger's face. “Good husband.”

“Don't do that.” Tiger half-carried him inside and dumped him on the couch, leaving the bag on the coffee table. Dick threw himself face-first into the cushions. He certainly had a new-found appreciation for teachers after this fiasco of a day.

Tiger brought him a cup of ginger tea, to which he'd added some honey and lemon. It hit the spot immediately. Tiger joined him on the couch, smirking a little when Dick moaned over the tea. He got up a few times to refill the cup, but otherwise let Dick lean on him.

Several cups later Tiger pulled Dick down to rest his head in his lap, and he gently massaged his temples for him. Dick soon found himself dozing off, long before he'd had a chance to come up with a smartass comment about their current situation. He'd regret that later, he just knew it.

He woke some time later to the sound of a door closing. Tiger was holding an oven dish. Dick sat up, wincing as his head started pounding again.

“Margaret made a beef casserole,” Tiger explained quietly.

“Nice of her. Is it okay for you to eat?”

“Yes. She gave me a list of the ingredients she used.”

“That's like... double nice.”

Tiger didn't quite laugh, but there was definite amusement in his eyes. “Go back to sleep. I will wake you later.”

“No, I'm good. Let's eat it now.”

“Very well.” Tiger took the casserole into the kitchen and returned with two filled bowls. Dick took one and curled up against Tiger's side as soon as he sat down. Tiger turned the television on to a news program. Aside from a giant robot rampage that crumbled as soon as Superman showed up, nothing particularly interesting happened.

Dick was halfway through dinner, and halfway to slipping into Tiger's lap, when someone knocked on their front door. Tiger wordlessly set his bowl on the coffee table and got up to answer it.

“Hello, Tahir,” came Steve's voice.

“Steve. Come in.”

Steve stepped inside and Tiger shut the door. “Oh. I'm sorry for interrupting dinner.”

“It's okay,” Dick replied. “What's up?”

“Just wanted to check in after today,” Steve said. “I know you're new to teaching and dealing with misbehaving students takes some getting used to.”

Dick sighed. “Not you too. I already got this talk from about five other teachers, both vice principals and the principal herself.”

Steve shrugged, smiling sheepishly. “Sorry. I heard you got the worst of it today.”

“Yeah, it wasn't fun.” Dick set his bowl on the coffee table; he was about done with it anyway. “Wanda told me to take tomorrow off. It's nice having a principal who actually supports her teachers, but, honestly, I'm fine.”

“Part of that's so she can hold an assembly tomorrow morning and talk about respecting substitute teachers without you actually being in the room,” Steve explained.

“Everyone's going to think I had a nervous breakdown when I don't show up tomorrow.”

“They'll get over it,” Steve assured him. “They had to push you pretty far to make you yell at them in the first place, so I'm sure at least some of them will feel bad. Or they will once they lose their next few lunchtimes to detention.”

“I'm going to be extra nice when I come in next, just to scare them,” Dick replied. “Or make them feel guilty.”

“Richard, you're always nice. You don't even have to try.”

Dick snorted. “I think Tahir would disagree.”

“You're married to him. You don't have to be nice anymore.”

Tiger cracked a small smile at that one, while Dick couldn't hold back a laugh. Steve had to leave shortly afterwards (“Before the wife sends out a search party”) and Dick got started on grading the tests he'd brought home. He had an answer sheet, so it wasn't too difficult to do. Just a little time-consuming since he had to check each student's working out on top of making sure they got the answer right.

He got about halfway through them before Tiger took his pen away.

“You need rest,” he insisted, capping the pen and tossing it back into Dick's bag. “Go to bed.”

“All right. Just a sec.” Dick put the tests back in the binder, marked ones on the bottom, and put it away. Tiger dragged him up to their bedroom the instant he was finished.

Dick was more than happy to climb into bed after the day he'd had. And then Tiger cuddled up against him and the night was complete. That said, however, it was pretty weird after two weeks of sleeping as far from each other as physically possible.

After a few minutes of Tiger drawing slow circles on his stomach, though, Dick had to ask.

“Dude,” he said. “Are you... comforting me?”

“Is it working?”

“Maybe?”

“Then yes. I am comforting you.”

“Uh, thank you?” Dick shifted into a more comfortable position. “You know I'm okay, though, right? I got over the whole thing a few hours ago.”

“I know that,” Tiger answered quickly. A little too quickly. Dick stifled his laugh and settled down to sleep. He wasn't all that eager to make Tiger stop. He'd missed being held like this. It soothed the little aches inside him, the ones he felt whenever he thought too hard about everyone he missed.

It had been a weird day, particularly with the way Tiger had doted on him ever since he got home. As long as he didn't think too hard about how this thing between them was only a temporary arrangement, it was actually rather nice.

“You are the lead agent for this mission,” Tiger said quietly. “It is my duty to make sure you can do your job.”

“Right. Gotcha.”

It stung a little bit to hear that.

* * *

Dick and Tiger spent the morning in the garden. Tiger had some kind of obsession with perfecting the rosebushes. Dick pulled what few weeds he could find; Tiger had done an excellent job maintaining the garden by himself.

They worked quietly, passing tools back and forth. Dick watered the flowers and then passed Tiger the can to take care of the roses. Tiger had cut the grass yesterday, so there wasn't much else to do.

Work finished, they sat on their doorstep with glasses of lemonade, the contents of which Dick had researched extensively before bringing into the house. Tiger had kissed his knuckles when he'd passed him a glass, which was a little weird but he could roll with that.

“We need groceries,” Dick said. “The bread's too stale for anything but toasting and I have no idea where all the milk went.”

“We drank it. You used the last of it in your... breakfast that was too disgusting to be called cereal.”

“Crocky Crunch is delicious and I stand by my decision.”

Tiger finished off his lemonade. “I have to pray at noon. I will join you later.”

“Sure thing.” Dick drained his glass and let Tiger take it off him. “Maybe I'll go chat up all the mothers out shopping with their kids in the meantime. I think Gloria runs a mother's club or something at this time of day. I'll try not to make anyone fall in love with me.”

Tiger scoffed and headed back inside. Dick grabbed his wallet and phone and headed out.

There was a small community garden on the way to the store, full of seasonal vegetables and boxes of flowers. Dick made a mental note to tell Tiger about this place, if he didn't already know.

Gloria was harvesting asparagus near the gate. She waved to Dick with a gloved hand. He took that as an invitation to enter.

“Those look amazing,” he noted, peering into her steadily-filling basket.

“They've turned out really well this year,” Gloria agreed. “A few are still growing, but that just means we'll have more for later.

“I like your optimism.”

Gloria patted down the soil around the asparagus she wasn't going to harvest, chuckling a little. “Birds of a feather, Richard?”

“I try.”

Gloria lifted her basket and headed further into the garden, Dick keeping pace with her. “Tahir has been by a few times while you've been working. How is he today?”

“He's good,” Dick replied, watching Gloria set the asparagus basket aside and grab an empty one. “He'll be along soon. I'm meant to be grabbing groceries. All our milk disappeared somehow. Tahir says it's my fault. And he's probably right.”

Another woman came by with a basket full of lemons. She was blonde and closer to Dick's age than Gloria's.

“Good work, Lisa,” Gloria said.

“I need another basket,” Lisa said, setting hers down and grabbing another one. “The lemons are all ripening at once.”

“I guess we'll all have to find excuses to use them,” Dick replied. “Hi.” He held out his hand. “I'm Richard Woods. My husband and I moved in two weeks ago.”

Lisa pulled off one of her gloves and shook Dick's hand. “Nice to meet you.”

“Lisa and her partner moved in about a week before you did,” said Gloria.

“Did you get drowned in people on your first day?” Dick asked.

“Oh, yes. People everywhere.”

“My husband, Tahir, hated it,” Dick continued.

“My boyfriend hid in the kitchen for half the day,” Lisa replied. “So I made him cook for everyone.”

“Tahir wasn't quite that bad, at least.”

“Lucky you,” Lisa muttered. “I better get the rest of these lemons off the tree before the fall off by themselves. Nice talking to you.” She headed off. Dick followed Gloria over to the avocado trees. Gloria passed him some gloves and he helped her pick the fruit.

Not long after he'd started, he felt gentle hands on his waist. He didn't bother looking around. “Hello, Tahir.”

Tiger kissed his cheek. “I do not believe this is grocery shopping.”

“Ran into Gloria,” Dick replied, bending to the side to place an avocado in the basket. “Got talking. One thing led to another.”

“And now you are handling her fruit?”

Dick snorted. “Okay, maybe you do have a sense of humour.”

“Oh, go on, you two,” Gloria said. “Come here on the way back and I'll grab you some produce.”

“Thank you very much,” Dick said, and he and Tiger left the garden to head to the store, walking down the street with their fingers gently tangled together.

“Okay, so,” Dick said, “we need bread and milk. We've got enough casserole for dinner tonight. What do you want for lunch?”

Tiger shrugged.

“Sandwiches are always a safe bet, I guess,” Dick continued, undeterred by Tiger's general unhelpfulness. “Hm. I think I spotted lettuce in the community garden, so we can probably ask Gloria for some of that. We've got half a dozen spreads at home already. Wanna grab some chicken? I remember Gloria mentioning the store stocks a brand that does different kinds of halal meat.”

“That will be fine.”

Dick grabbed a basket as they entered the store. He and Tiger didn't really bother looking at the produce, since Gloria was going to give them some from the garden. Dick grabbed some olives, some black and some green, since olive trees generally weren't ready to harvest until later in the year.

He and Tiger may have bickered over the olives. Just a little bit.

“These are twice as expensive as the larger can over there,” said Tiger, his hand resting casually on the small of Dick's back.

“Of course they are. They're _better_.”

“How do you know that?”

“I grew up in a wealthy household, T. I know my olives.”

“Does the quality of the olives really matter? They all taste the same in the end.”

“They matter to me. Come on, we can afford it.” Dick grabbed a second can of the same brand off the shelf. “I want them, and I am buying them. Your olive palate may be unrefined, but mine is not.” He could just imagine Alfred having a conniption if he'd given in to buying the cheap shit when he could afford the better quality.

“You are ridiculous.”

“I know.”

At least buying bread and milk wasn't all that difficult. Tiger didn't much care what sort they got, so Dick grabbed the wholemeal bread and the full cream milk. He personally thought skim milk was disgusting, even as half of his family swore by the stuff. They weren't here to fight him on that point right now. He wished they were.

He shook that thought off before it dragged his mood down.

It was well after two by the time they got home and made those sandwiches. Gloria had supplied them with a bit of everything, in exchange for a promise they would invite everyone over for dinner on the weekend. Gloria insisted on handling the invitations herself.

Even away from prying eyes, Dick and Tiger didn't quite shake off the closeness. The kisses stopped, but they still leaned against each other on the couch in front of the television, catching up on the most boring news stories of the day before switching to soap opera reruns. Tiger spent most of the time mocking the characters and the state of American television in general.

After the nightmarish day at work yesterday, it made a nice change. All Dick had to do was avoid thinking about how this mission could easily be over in two weeks and everything that had developed between them would go up in smoke.

* * *

Dick returned to work the next day, Friday. He took his first gym class without being relegated to the role of assistant. The class wasn't one of the troublesome ones he'd taken the other day, but they seemed to have attended that assembly Steve had mentioned, since they were very quiet and compliant. Dick felt a little bad for bringing that on. That said, however, he didn't just blow up at anyone, especially not children. Some of the kids obviously needed to hear what was said in that assembly. It was just unfortunate the kids who hadn't done anything wrong had to deal with the fallout as well.

Wanda checked in with him halfway through the lunch hour.

“No trouble today?” she asked.

“None,” Dick replied, setting down the sandwich Tiger had made him. The sight of it was so painfully domestic. “The kids have been even quieter than usual, actually.”

“They'll be back to their usual selves in no time,” Wanda said. “Listen, Andrew just went home so I need you to take over his class again. It's the... well, it's the paper airplane class.”

Dick remembered that class. It had been the second class of the day and the kids had not wanted to work. He'd looked away to write something on the board and turned around to find a paper airplane on his desk. And a few still in the air. He'd tossed the planes in the bin and gone on with the class, but things had just escalated from there. That was the first class he'd ever yelled at. The day had continued to get worse after that.

“I'm sure they'll behave,” Dick replied. “They can't be that awful all the time, surely.”

Wanda laughed uncomfortably. “I'll poke my head in, just in case. I am sorry for springing this on you. All the other substitutes are busy.”

“I'll cope. Thank you.”

That class was quiet. Not as quiet as the others, but definitely quiet for their own standards. That was a relief. Dick didn't feel like yelling again. They were taking a test, though, so that probably had something to do with the quiet. Test classes were usually easy to substitute. All Dick really had to do was hand out the tests, make sure everyone followed the rules, and take all the tests back at the end.

It was such a marked difference from all the jobs Dick had taken in the past. Obviously, being Robin and Nightwing and, for a short time, Batman, had been full of excitement (and the occasional boring stakeout made better with coffee and whatever snacks he could sneak past Bruce). Spyral wasn't a whole lot different in that regard, though he definitely found their work morally objectionable at least half the time.

Honestly, Dick missed having easy decisions to make, easily informed by the code of ethics Bruce had instilled in him early on. This spy business was too... messy.

This mission, however, he was fairly certain wasn't like that. He didn't know what would happen to this killer when they finally caught him, and, honestly, he didn't want to know. The man was a criminal and needed to be brought to justice. He'd prefer to put him in prison, but that wasn't an option here. Sadly.

God, even the more altruistic Spyral missions were a mess.

Dick had no idea how many people he'd had a hand in killing while part of Spyral. The thought was nauseating.

He was incredibly grateful when school finally let out and he could go home. Killers should be kept far away from children, as far as he was concerned, and he was but a step away from being a killer. Plenty of people had already died because of him. He'd never pulled the trigger any on of them, but it didn't make things better.

And there was no one he could talk about this about, because everyone he now worked with in Spyral had no such concerns about the way they operated. The rare occasions he was able to contact Bruce were short and there was never enough time to get into this.

He was grateful for the car. It limited the amount of time he had to spend travelling out in public when he felt like this.

Tiger wasn't around when he let himself into the house. A note on the fridge told Dick he was down at the community garden. He'd left some choc chip cookies in the fridge for him.

The sheer domesticity of the whole situation—the note, the cookies, just everything—made Dick laugh a little bit. Eating the cookies lifted his mood the smallest amount. Dick grabbed one of the paperbacks populating the bookshelf—they were mostly for looks, but Dick sometimes found interesting things there—and read for a few hours until Tiger returned home with more produce.

“The harvest must be bountiful this year,” Dick commented, watching Tiger lug the basket into the kitchen.

“Gloria insists we cook with the community garden's produce for our dinner party,” Tiger replied. “I believe she has invited fifteen people already.”

Dick laughed nervously. “Oh. Great.”

Tiger pulled some pieces of paper out of his pocket and set them on the bench. “She also gave me five new recipes.”

“That woman is a menace. I love her.” They were going to be cooking all day tomorrow.

Dick helped Tiger find a place for all the produce and then they sat in front of the television with the last of the casserole for dinner, watching the news as had become their custom.

Unfortunately for Dick's mood, Batman and the rest of the family were featured tonight. Apparently there had been a huge showdown with several of the rogues and everyone had banded together to win. The brief glimpse of Damian, already back as Robin after dying and being brought back, was a punch in the gut. He could only imagine the affect his faked death was having on the youngest in the family, having to live with the fact he'd fought so hard to keep everyone safe, only to have Dick die on him anyway.

Dick used the excuse of dirty dishes to escape to the kitchen as soon as he and Tiger had finished eating. He needed a minute to himself.

He filled the sink and added a generous helping of dishwashing liquid. He'd barely finished a plate Tiger had evidently eaten his lunch on when he could feel the other man's presence in the room.

“Is something wrong?” Tiger asked, grabbing a towel to dry the plate.

“No, I just...” Dick sighed. There was no point hiding it. “I'm just missing my family. They all think I'm dead. I haven't seen Robin since he came back from being really dead.” Dick handed a washed bowl to Tiger and started on the next. “Did you know I was Batman for a while? He was my Robin. We were still pretty close before he... yeah. I knew Batman was going to get him back. I just wish I could see him, you know? But I can't because I'm supposed to be dead. It's safer for everyone that way.”

“Yes, I remember your identity was compromised.” Tiger finished drying the bowl and put it in its cabinet.

“I can be self-sufficient,” Dick said. “Don't get me wrong. I just don't like it when I don't have a choice. Batgirl and I were close for a while. And Red Robin. I miss that kid. Red Hood and I weren't exactly on the best of terms, but he's still family. I wish we'd been able to get along better before I...” The few dishes Dick had to wash were finished. He gripped the edge of the counter with slippery hands. “I know I'm hurting them. All of them. And I hate it. And I can't even talk to them. Or touch them. Or...”

Tiger finished drying the dishes and wrapped his arms around Dick's waist. “Drain the sink.”

Dick wordlessly complied, accepting the towel Tiger offered him to dry his hands. “I'm sorry. I shouldn't be falling apart like this. Not on a mission.”

Tiger kissed his neck, right on the pulse point below his jaw. “I forgive you.”

“Well, that's uncharacteristically nice of you.”

“Quiet.” Tiger's fingers dug into his hips. “I cannot solve the larger problem, but we have succeeded in—what's the word?— _minimising_ it before.”

“What do you—?” Dick didn't finish his sentence; Tiger had slipped his fingers beneath the waistband of his slacks. “ _Oh_.”

What even was his life right now?

“Are you interested?” Tiger whispered, right in his ear.

Dick shivered. He was absolutely interested. And definitely going to hate himself later.

“Sure,” he said, and Tiger swept him into his arms and carried him up to their bedroom, throwing him right onto the bed. Tiger pounced upon him, his lips finding Dick's, fingers popping open shirt buttons and scratching against the skin underneath. Dick was already gasping between kisses, grasping at handfuls of Tiger's shirt, wrapping his legs around the other man's waist, lifting his hips to press their bodies flush against each other.

Tiger tugged on Dick's lower lip with his teeth, shoving Dick down against the bed again. He kissed down Dick chin, neck, chest, and sucked a hickey into his left hip bone as he released the button on his pants, tugging the zip down, painfully slow, millimeter by millimeter. Dick's cock already strained against the zip and he felt himself twitch as Tiger's knuckle brushed against the shaft, still thinly covered by his underwear.

Zip finally down, Tiger tugged Dick's pants down and tossed them away. Dick shucked off his shirt and lay back on his elbows, watching Tiger take off his own clothes until both men were clad in nothing but their underwear, which did absolutely nothing to conceal their arousal.

Tiger dug through a drawer in the nightstand, finding a condom and a bottle of lube.

“Did you buy those?” Dick asked.

“No. They have been here since the start of the mission.”

Dick knew exactly whose fault that was. “I'll be having a little chat with Helena once this is all over.”

Tiger pushed Dick against the pillows. “Quiet.”

“Or what? You'll spank me?”

Tiger knelt between Dick's legs, gripping the waistband of the other man's underwear. “Would you like that?”

“Probably.”

“Then no.”

“Ow, my feelings.”

Tiger pulled Dick's underwear down his thighs. Dick lifted his feet in the air to help him get them off. Tiger pinned Dick's hips to the bed, biting and sucking another hickey to match the one already down there. His mouth was so close to Dick's cock and it was driving Dick to distraction, his legs already shaking in anticipation of the sensations that hadn't even happened yet.

He moaned loudly, legs spreading open, when Tiger finally touched him there, jerking him a few times before swallowing him down in one go.

“Fuck! Fucking—” Dick took a shuddering breath, grasping fistfuls of bedsheets. He felt Tiger swallow around the head of his cock and thought he was going to lose it right then. A few gasping breaths brought him back under control. For now.

And then a slick finger slipped inside him. Dick clenched around it, a hair's-breadth away from screaming. Tiger locked eyes with him, stern but calming, and he forced himself to relax and take another finger.

Tiger knew just where to touch him to bring him to the brink, fingers rubbing his prostate over and over again until his entire body was shaking.

“Oh—fuck—Tiger—I can't—”

Tiger sat up, removing his fingers. “Breathe. You are not allowed to come yet.”

Dick gulped down air. Tiger crawled to rest beside him and gently stroked his abdomen. Dick gasped from the tickling contact—he was way too sensitive right now. Tiger climbed on top of him and shoved his tongue into Dick's mouth in a bruising kiss, his erection brushing against Dick's. Dick groaned into Tiger's mouth, digging his nails into Tiger's heavily-muscled back.

“Are you in control of yourself?” Tiger breathed against Dick's lips.

“Yes. Yes, I—please. I need...”

“Shh. I know what you need.” Tiger reached for the bottle of lube, squeezing some into his hand. He stroked himself, biting his lip, until he was slick enough. “Remember: you don't come until I say you can come. Okay?”

“Okay,” Dick gasped, his cock still throbbing from Tiger's previous efforts. He breathed out slowly as Tiger pushed inside. As aroused as he was, he took Tiger's generous girth easily. Unlike the last time. Tiger grabbed a pillow and shoved it under Dick's hips, giving him a few experimental thrusts that nearly had Dick plummeting over the edge already.

Tiger grabbed Dick's legs and pushed them back until his feet were practically by Dick's ears. Well, all those acrobatics had been good for something here. Tiger thrust again, deeper, and Dick let out a whimper.

Tiger worked up a rhythm, slow at first but constantly rising in pace, gripping Dick's ankles. He couldn't press their bodies too close together like this, but Dick had the best view of Tiger's sculpted body rippling, his hips rolling and slapping against Dick's ass with every thrust. His body was deliciously slick with sweat and Dick's mouth watered, longing for a taste.

Dick was achingly hard. He needed release, and he needed it _now_. His fingers twitched and he almost wrapped them around himself, but he was so close to coming and Tiger hadn't given him the green light yet. Instead, he gripped the headboard behind him, sighing and moaning and _begging_ for release.

“Not yet,” Tiger said. “Be patient.”

“I _can't_.”

“You _can_. Or you will be punished.”

Fuck, he shouldn't have found that so hot. Every muscle in his body was twitching, his cock was leaking onto his stomach, pulsing and edging closer and closer to the end.

Tiger pushed in as deep as he could go, cursing under his breath, and his rhythm began to fall apart. He let go of Dick's ankles and pressed their bodies as close as physically possible, squeezing him tightly. Dick wrapped his legs around Tiger's waist and pushed into each frantic thrust, his breaths coming in desperate sobs for the release he could not have yet.

Tiger's breath was hot and ragged against his ear. “ _Ngh_. Come, Dick. Now. Come for me.”

Dick let go, screaming his release, gripping and grasping and pressing against Tiger's thrusts as hard as he could. Tiger thrust deep, gripping Dick's ass for more leverage, and came inside him, groaning into Dick's ear.

As soon as his orgasm was over, Tiger collapsed on top of him, panting heavily, muscles still spasming every few seconds.

Dick blew out a long breath. “That was...”

“Mm-hm.” Tiger took a few deep breaths. “How do you feel?”

“Gooey.”

Tiger chuckled softly. “That will do.” He climbed off Dick and collapsed onto the mattress. “Now sleep.”

It wasn't a hard request to obey.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dick and Tiger host a dinner party. Dick deals with the emotional impact of their closeness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I LIVE.
> 
> I've got two weeks off, so hopefully I can complete this fic before I have to go back to school. Hopefully. I don't think I've got too much left to write. Maybe two more chapters, but I can't say for certain yet.

It was still dark when Dick woke up, Tiger's fingers slowly tracing his abs. It tickled. Dick huffed out a breath of laughter, and those fingers slid south, a thumb rubbing the base of his cock.

“Couldn't get enough the first time, huh?” Dick said, his voice still hoarse from sleep. Tiger's hand wrapped around him, sparking him fully awake. He could feel Tiger's cock pressed against his ass. He shifted his hips, smirking when the other man cursed under his breath.

“Stay there,” Tiger rumbled, reaching over him for the bottle of lube and a spare condom on the nightstand. Tiger settled back in, slowly sliding his fingers inside Dick, wrapping his free hand back around his cock.

Still relaxed from the best nap he'd had in years, Dick sighed and easily adjusted to the intrusion. Tiger's slow, lazy, languid motions had him closing his eyes and breathing shakily into the pillow, gasping every so often as the man's fingers brushed a sensitive spot.

Body warm, thrumming with sensations. All those meditation techniques Dick had learned over the years were definitely coming in handy right now.

He nearly came when he felt something much larger pushing inside him. Tiger felt him twitch, and he stopped.

“Shit,” Dick breathed. “Just a sec. Need to... okay. I'm okay.”

Tiger let go of Dick's erection, gripping his hips as he pushed the rest of the way in. He gave Dick a moment to adjust, rubbing his palm in circles on Dick's stomach. It was relaxing. He was halfway to dozing off when Tiger began to move. Slowly at first, but then picking up speed until their flesh slapped together and the top of Dick's skull nearly hit the headboard and he had to grab onto the mattress for some leverage. Tiger steadied him by the hips again, fingers digging into flesh already tender from their last round.

An especially hard thrust had the air rushing from Dick's lungs, and he loved it. Then Tiger bit into his shoulder, then the base of his neck, and he loved that too.

Dick tried to speak up. “That... that all you got?” He bit the pillow to stifle a moan. “Come on. Harder. I—fuck!”

Another bite into his shoulder. Fingers digging bruises on top of bruises. Tiger groaned against Dick's skin, driving deeper and faster and sloppier, his rhythm stuttering as his climax approached.

Dick was on the edge. So close. He squeezed his eyes shut, angling downward slightly to rub his cock against the bedsheets. Tiger pushed him face-down against the bed in response, straddling his ass and continuing to fuck without missing a thrust, every movement pressing Dick harder into the mattress.

Dick wedged a hand under his body, wrapping it around his cock, jerking desperately, grasping for release.

He found it, spilling over his hand and onto the sheets. Tiger was growling out words that were certainly not in English, thrusting hard and fast and unsteady in the throes of his own climax.

When he was finally spent, Tiger gently rolled onto the mattress, bringing Dick's ass along for the ride. Dick, for his part, closed his eyes and enjoyed the afterglow.

You...” Tiger trailed off, pulling out with a soft groan. He threw away the condom and slotted in behind Dick as if they hadn't woken up at all. Dick still wasn't wholly used to Tiger being a cuddler, but he certainly wasn't complaining as he drifted back to sleep in the other man's arms.

* * *

Dick was dimly aware of when Tiger got up in the morning to pray, but he was so worn out that he fell back into a deep sleep without too much trouble.

He woke up properly in the late afternoon, stretching out the pain in his muscles from their activities the previous night. He half-dozed in the shower before stripping the bed and throwing the soiled sheets in the washing machine. He made a half-awake attempt to put fresh sheets on the bed, but it looked terrible and Tiger would be annoyed with him. Oh well.

Dick headed downstairs to the kitchen, where Tiger had already started preparing for the dinner party.

“Hey,” Dick said, stifling a yawn. He still felt loose and warm and kind of wanted to drape himself over Tiger like a really weird cape.

“Hello.” Tiger pulled him in close by the waist and gave him a squeeze. “I left you a sandwich in the fridge. Eat and then help me.”

“Yes, sir.”

Tiger turned back to the carrots he was chopping. “Call me that one more time and I will tie you to a chair.”

“You know I'd probably like it,” Dick replied, grabbing the sandwich plate out of the fridge.

“I will blindfold and gag you,” Tiger continued. “Then I will give you the best oral sex of your life and stop just before you finish. Then I will leave you there until dinner.”

“You're a cruel, cruel man, Tiger.” Dick didn't mention he was an expert at escaping from ropes. No need to give the man more ideas when they really needed to get some cooking done.

Dick was tasked with chopping some onions when he was finished eating. Tiger had gone out and bought a pressure cooker and was making his own beef stock. The onions weren't too taxing on the eyes; they were cold and had probably been refrigerated. He got the sliced onions into the pressure cooker and Tiger added some tomato paste. Dick spotted a bowl of rice soaking in water on the bench while Tiger sauteed the contents of the pressure cooker, stirring to stop it all from sticking.

“So, what are we cooking?” Dick asked.

“Roast beef with a jus,” Tiger said, motioning to the pressure cooker. “The rice is for a kabuli pulao. Also called a lamb pilaf. The guests will understand that better. It needs to soak before I can work with it. Gloria gave us too many lemons, so we will make a lemon shortcake for dessert and use the rest another time.”

“Sounds good to me.”

He watched Tiger finish the sautee and add the beef that had been resting in a bowl, directing Dick to get some water to pour inside. Tiger gave the mixture a few stirs before putting the lid on and letting it cook.

Tiger had Dick doing little tasks, like preparing the baking paper, while he did most of the heavy lifting. He claimed it was because Dick was an idiot, naturally.

Partway through the cooking, Tiger had to rush out to grab some extra ingredients, leaving Dick in charge of making sure the house didn't burn down.

Being alone in the house gave Dick time to think about last night. It wasn't the first time they'd slept together, and at times Tiger did genuinely seem interested in him. Dick would've liked to believe there was some form of attraction going on here. He really would. But Tiger was a professional. The speed with which he'd picked up his acting game was a testament to that. It was difficult to decide whether any signals he gave were genuine, or whether he should rather take Tiger's insistence that he was helping Dick deal with his isolation for the sake of the mission at face value.

Hell, for all he knew, Tiger could be playing some fucked-up game with him. He was a Spyral agent, and Spyral wasn't exactly the epitome of virtue.

It was all too murky for Dick's liking, and the odds of getting a straight answer out of Tiger were slim to none. Spyral in general was too murky for him, but he didn't quite have a choice in that. But he did have a choice in how he dealt with Tiger.

This couldn't go on. He'd have to talk to him. Probably after the dinner was over. The awkwardness would take some time to wear off once they'd had this conversation, and they didn't need that right before they had to play pretend for an entire evening.

Dick fought to keep himself calm when Tiger returned from the store. Just one more evening. He could do that. Then they would talk.

At least the food turned out beautifully. The roast looked hearty, the rice forming the backbone of the pilaf was golden and inviting, and the lemon shortcake was made of thin layers of cake stacked like pancakes with lemon cream spread generously between them. Tiger finished off the cake by grating lemon rind on top and drizzling the whole thing with a lemon sauce.

Dick watched Tiger put the cake in the fridge. “Are you a wizard?”

“I am not going to dignify that with an answer. Set the table.”

“Yes, Gandalf.”

Tiger narrowed his eyes. “Go.”

“I'm going, I'm going.”

Dick found a tablecloth in a closet somewhere and started laying out the plates. Tiger took over when the doorbell rang, leaving Dick free to answer it.

A large group was waiting out front, with Gloria on the doorstep. Dick waved them all inside. He knew most of the people. Gloria had brought Steve and the kids. Margaret and her brood—her husband, both daughters, her son-in-law and three grandchildren—also made an appearance. Wanda had come alone.

Right at the back of the group was Lisa, with a man who must've been her boyfriend. Her murderous boyfriend, who Dick and Tiger had been after this whole time. Well, that made things easier, provided they didn't blow their cover.

“Hi, Richard,” said Lisa. “This is my boyfriend, Tom.”

“Hi, Tom,” Dick said, shaking the man's hand. “A pleasure to meet you. I'm Richard, obviously, and you'll meet my husband, Tahir, in a second.”

“I, uh, look forward to it.”

Wow, this guy was not good at acting casual. Dick felt a lot better about his and Tiger's chances of pulling this whole thing off. Dick pretended not to notice the nervousness, and headed back inside.

Tiger was still adding the finishing touches to dinner, so Dick got everyone settled at the table. It was a tight fit, but Tiger had brought home a little folding table for the kids to sit separately so it wasn't as tight a fit as it could've been. Emily was less than impressed about being seated at the children's table, but that had been Gloria and Steve's decision so Dick was free of any consequences.

Dick headed into the kitchen and filled a jug with water for the table, nudging Tiger as he passed. “Target located,” he said quietly. “Lisa's boyfriend.”

“Hm. Convenient.”

“I like convenience. It should happen more often.”

“Be on guard.”

Dick grabbed a bottle of juice from the fridge. “But not too on guard or he'll figure us out. He seems pretty new to the deception thing, but that could be an act. Who knows?”

“We will find out.” Tiger transferred the roast to a cutting board from where it had been resting on a plate. “I will serve dinner soon. Tend to our guests until then.”

“On it.”

Gloria and Julia had already wrangled their children into some semblance of obedience. Dick poured out drinks for everyone. Wanda had brought a bottle of red wine, which was distributed amongst the adults. Dick abstained, wanting to keep himself sharp. He also didn't want to put Tiger in a position of being left out for not drinking. He noticed Tom and Lisa weren't drinking, either.

Tiger brought out dinner in short order, placing the sliced roast and the lamb pilaf in the centre of the table. He'd also whipped up some mashed potatoes and roast vegetables from the community garden. The beef jus was sitting in its vessel, ready to pour.

“This looks lovely,” said Margaret. “What's in the rice?”

“Lamb, onion, garlic, carrots, sultanas, almonds and spices,” Tiger replied.

“Did you learn the recipe from your family in Afghanistan?”

“Yes.” Tiger managed to keep his face mostly impassive, but Dick noticed the smallest hint of strain. He didn't know what that was about, but now certainly wasn't a good time to pry. Considering this was Tiger, there was probably never going to be a good time.

Dick took the focus off him. “Shall we eat?”

Everyone dug in, murmuring in appreciation. Dick kept busy refilling drinks and chatting with everyone. Tiger wasn't as outgoing, but he and Gloria did strike up a conversation about gardening and the local produce he had used while cooking today. Dick stayed well away from that one.

After a while, he sat down with Tom and Lisa, who were seated at the end of the table and not really talking to anyone.

“So,” Dick said, “how are you liking everything so far?”

“It's good,” Lisa replied. “Who cooked?”

“Tahir, mostly,” Dick said. “I'm not allowed to cook unsupervised anymore. I set things on fire sometimes. Usually by accident.”

Lisa laughed and Tom chuckled a little bit.

“I chopped some vegetables,” Dick continued. “I'm amazed Tahir trusted me with a knife, but here we are. Underneath that grouchy exterior, he's secretly an optimist. It's adorable.”

Margaret, who had been not-so-subtly listening in, gave Dick a gentle nudge. “You two are such newlyweds. Remember our first year, Herb?”

“Hm? Oh. Yes.” Herb was blushing a little bit. Dick decided he didn't want to know what was going through the man's mind.

“Not that part,” Margaret sighed. “Well... mostly. Did you two enjoy yourselves last night?”

“What?” Last night. Getting fucked into the mattress. Right. “Oh. Jesus. I am so sorry.” Apparently Margaret and Herb lived right next door. Dick hadn't known exactly where they lived up until that point. Tiger had probably known but not deigned to tell him. And Tiger liked to have the windows open during the day, since Spyral had installed security screens on all the window frames and they were in a fairly safe neighbourhood. He sometimes forgot to close them before going to bed. Dick hadn't thought much about it at the time, but he could recall hearing the breeze playing tug-of-war with the bedroom door last night in the way it only did when the windows were open.

Margaret patted his hand. “It's all right. Happens to the best of us.”

Dick's face was going to burst into flame. “Excuse me while I die of embarrassment.” Lisa and Tom looked like they might just join him.

“Now, now,” said Herb. “We can't have that. What would Tahir do on all those lonely nights?”

“You're a terrible person, Herb,” Dick replied. He made very awkward eye contact with Tom and Lisa. “So, great icebreaker. Lovely to meet you, Tom. Hope you're enjoying yourself so far.”

“I'm over the moon,” Tom said, deadpan. So the man _could_ talk. Dick had wondered if Lisa would be speaking for him the whole night.

Dick caught a whiff of Tiger's aftershave mere seconds before he felt lips on his cheek. “Hey, Tahir. Have you come to join me in the pit of humiliation? Tom and Lisa are right there with me. Get a few more drinks and we'll have a pity party.”

“Are Margaret and Herb teasing you about last night?” asked Tiger.

“How'd you know they knew before I did?”

“Because they visited while you were lazing around in bed today,” Tiger replied. “I did not blush as deeply as they had hoped.”

“So they decided to try me next, huh? Well, mission accomplished, you two. My face is on fire and I want to hide forever.”

Margaret smiled innocently at him while Herb bit back a snort.

“Come with me,” Tiger said. Everything sounded dirty to Dick right in that moment. Dick bit back whatever smartass comment nearly came out of his mouth and followed Tiger into the kitchen.

“Give me a minute,” Dick said. He filled up a glass of water and downed the whole thing in a few gulps. “Okay. Better. What's this about?”

“What do you think of the target?” Tiger asked quietly, pulling Dick into a loose embrace.

“He's reserved,” Dick whispered against Tiger's ear. “Lisa's the mouthpiece. I still haven't decided whether she's innocent or a co-conspirator. Either way, if we want to get close to Tom, we'll have to do it through her. She's the risk-taker. He'll go with what she does, but he's not going to take any initiative. He knows he's being hunted, but I don't think he realises how close his hunters are. We'll update Helena tonight, but for now we'll just have to keep earning people's trust. Except now we can work on our target directly.”

“Good.” Tiger let him go. “Let us serve dessert. You refill drinks.”

It was a little unnerving how easy it was to slip into the role of loving husband here. What was even more unnerving was how much Dick liked it. The stability would no doubt start to get boring after a while, but being with Tiger in itself was nice.

And that was exactly why he had to put an end to things between them before he got too attached. This was never going to end happily for him. Better to nip it in the bud now, rather than suffer even more later when Tiger ended it himself.

Dick kept the roleplaying up for the rest of the dinner party, playing the part of adoring husband as the guests oohed and ahhed over the lemon shortcake. It was a pretty cool cake—thin layers of sponge glued together with thick dollops of lemon-tinged cream to form what looked a bit like a pancake stack. It was delicious, too, Dick noted as Tiger fed him a spoonful.

Couple-y moments aside, Dick worked a bit more on Tom and Lisa and managed to get their residential address and a phone number with the promise to hang out more another day. Lisa wanted the cake recipe, and Dick volunteered Tiger to make it with her one day in the near future.

Dick wasn't sad when the evening was finally over. He'd enjoyed himself as much as he could while playing a role, but he was ready for some time to recharge. And say what he had to say to Tiger.

Herb and Margaret left with some rather inappropriate eyebrow-waggles that were lost on everyone except the small handful who had witnessed Dick's humiliation. Gloria was gushing about the party while Steve patiently shepherded her and the kids out the door. Lisa hung back long enough to confirm the cooking session at her place, while Tom was already heading for their car. The others left fairly quietly after thanking Dick and Tiger for dinner.

Dick let out a long breath as he shut the door at last. Tiger was already washing dishes.

“You don't have to do that,” Dick said, entering the kitchen. “You did all the cooking. Let me.”

“Get a towel and dry,” Tiger replied. Dick decided against arguing the point and grabbed a teatowel. They washed up quietly, having said everything that needed to be said about the party already. Now wasn't a good time to bring up toning down the affection, not while they were both holding very breakable plates. Dick didn't think Tiger would be attached to him enough to be upset about Dick's request, but it never hurt to be careful.

It was getting close to midnight, after Tiger had decided to clean the whole damn house, when Dick finally had an opening.

“Tiger?” Dick asked quietly as the man put on a load of washing. “Can we talk?”

“Talk.”

“It's... sorry. This is going to sound awful after last night. Like I'm using you. But...” It was harder than he'd expected to find the right words and then force them out of his mouth. “I think we need to dial back the affection.”

Tiger watched the washing machine do its thing, rather than look up at him. “Is there a problem?”

“Not with the mission,” Dick replied. “It's just...” He sighed. “Look. I know this whole couple thing is just a job for you, and you've gotten really good at it. Like, _really_ good.” He swallowed. “But... you're actually kind of getting _too_ good at it and now I'm starting to believe it's, you know, more than just an act. So. I think we need to back off. Still play the part in front of people, but only as much as we need to. We need to switch it off when we're alone, even if that might make the PDA harder to act. No more cuddling in front of the TV. Or the comfort sex. As nice as it was, and as much as it helped, I can't keep doing it. I'm sorry.”

“Okay. I understand.” Tiger still hadn't looked at him.

“You do?”

“Yes. It's late. Go to bed.”

“I... okay. See you in the morning.”

Dick headed up to bed, his stomach sitting heavy inside him. He'd done the right thing. He wasn't good at switching off his emotions. It was safer for him to avoid getting close to anyone in Spyral.

He tried desperately to ignore the tiny voice in the back of his head that told him it was too late for that.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dick had expected more of a fight. He really should have gotten used to disappointment by now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A character gets a bit creepy about a teenage girl in this chapter. Also more Islamophobia.

Tiger didn't sleep. He put in a call to Helena to update her on their progress, brushing off her questions about why his voice sounded so flat. She confirmed his and Dick's earlier decision to remain cautious and learn more about Lisa before making a move. Tiger cut off the call shortly thereafter, before Helena could really get into prying.

Later, he sat in the darkened living room, reliving that conversation with Dick. Perhaps Tiger had been taking advantage of his loneliness this whole time. He'd been aware from the beginning how unlikely it was that Dick would give him a second glance otherwise. Clearly the physical nature of things had gotten too much for him to justify to himself.

Tiger wondered how much Dick had been attracted to Alia, and how much of what went on between them had simply been a desire to feel less alone. Alia had been a beautiful woman, of course, certainly more Dick's type than Tiger was. Honestly, it was likely Dick had genuinely liked her. Far more likely than it was for Dick to like him.

He should have thought this through. He should have stopped himself from propositioning Dick that first night at St Hadrian's. Everything would've been far less complicated if he had just kept it in his pants. It was rare for Tiger to find someone he was interested in on such a level, so naturally it would be even rarer for those feelings to be reciprocated.

Dick didn't need Tiger at all. He just needed the contact. That had been the pretence under which Tiger had come onto him in the first place, after all. Perhaps that was all there was to it.

Clearly their closeness had become too much for Dick to handle. The man needed space. Tiger could give that to him. It had been foolish to get his hopes up in the first place.

Tiger had to think of the mission now. Dick's comfort would be important to their success. They couldn't have him feeling off-balance. Dick was clearly an excellent actor when he needed to be, but there was no need to make the role harder for him to play than necessary.

Tiger would take this rejection with grace. It wasn't exactly Dick's fault things had progressed this far. Tiger had been the one initiating most of their contact. He should have been able to gauge Dick's level of discomfort long before it got to the point where Dick felt he had to say something, and he should have adjusted things accordingly.

That decided, Tiger searched for something to get his mind off the situation, at least for a little while. He headed for the kitchen. There was a chocolate mousse recipe he wanted to try, and that was the sort of food that benefited from being refrigerated for hours before eating. It wouldn't take him long, but it would give his hands something to do for a few minutes at least. Dick was probably deep enough asleep by now to not react to the sound of the electric mixer.

And if he did wake, well, maybe he deserved to lose a little sleep. Just this once. Tiger allowed himself that tiny slice of vindictiveness, at least.

* * *

Dick and Tiger soon managed to get Tom and Lisa to invite them over. Lisa really wanted that cake recipe. Dick would have preferred to read Lisa more up close himself, but Tiger already had an in with her due to his cooking. So Dick was stuck in the incredibly dull living room with Tom while the other two messed around in the kitchen. Beige carpet, beige walls, ugh.

“So, Tom,” Dick said, taking a sip of his water, which he'd discreetly inspected for poisons when Tom hadn't been looking.

“Yeah?”

“What do you and Lisa do?”

“Lisa's a cashier,” Tom replied. “I do odd jobs for a little extra money. Mow lawns, walk dogs, stuff like that. What do you do?”

“I'm a substitute teacher,” Dick replied. “Tahir's unemployed. He's been helping out with some community projects, like the garden. Gloria pays us in produce.”

“Lisa came home with a dozen lemons last week,” Tom said.

“You too, huh? They're all ripening at once, apparently. Gloria's been trying to get rid of them.”

Tom sighed. “Great.”

“Not a fan of lemons?”

“Not in large quantities, no.”

“Well, you're in for a bad time these next few weeks, aren't you?” Dick said. This guy didn't know the half of it.

“I hate my life.”

God, this guy was whiny when he finally got around to opening his mouth. Dick couldn't wait to apprehend him and end this mission. The whole thing with Tiger may have had a little bit to do with that, too. Playing the married couple was getting tiring, especially now they were only putting it on in public.

Until then, however, he had to keep up the act. It wouldn't do for the guy to start getting suspicious now. Not when they were so close to finishing this.

“Tahir tried a new chocolate mousse recipe the other day,” Dick said. “It turned out pretty well. Maybe we could give that a shot today then you've got dessert for tomorrow night.”

Lisa and Tiger came in from the kitchen with a plate of sandwiches.

“The cake's in the fridge,” Lisa said. “Eat up.”

Dick took a sandwich, shuffling over on the couch to make room for Tiger. He didn't miss how Lisa made a beeline for the armchair without a second glance. They probably could've squished up if she'd wanted to join Tom on the couch. That alone wasn't much cause for concern—some people preferred their space and many people were uncomfortable with getting affectionate in front of others—but Dick filed it away in his mind just in case.

The sandwiches were lovely, as per usual. Dick ended up doing most of the talking. Again, as per usual. He managed to steer everyone onto the topic of their relationships.

“So, where did you two meet?” Dick asked Lisa and Tom. There was a flash of panic in Tom's eyes, and Lisa immediately took the reigns.

“Nothing special,” Lisa replied. A few seconds passed. Dick could read her coming up with a story. “I grew up in a small town interstate. Tom was passing through and stopped by the store to grab some supplies. I served him. We clicked. I left with him.”

“Couldn't get away fast enough, huh?” Dick commented. “I've heard small towns can be stifling sometimes. I don't know. I grew up in the city.”

“Yeah,” Lisa agreed. “Tom was my ticket out there. And now here we are. What about you two?”

“I met Tahir at college,” Dick replied. He and Tiger had fleshed out this story weeks ago. “A few of my friends were studying politics. Tahir was a guest speaker at a public lecture they organised and dragged me into attending.”

“I was not the only speaker,” Tiger clarified. “A number of immigrants had come to speak about their experiences coming to America.”

“I went to talk to Tahir afterwards because, well, look at him,” Dick added. “I tripped down the last few steps and my bag broke because the universe hates me, apparently. Tahir caught me before I hit the floor and then picked up all my stuff. It probably would've been rather romantic if I hadn't wanted the ground to swallow me up then and there.”

“You were blushing all day,” Tahir said. “Even after I took you out for coffee.”

Dick chuckled; he really enjoyed this story. “I wasn't sure if you were into me or just felt bad about my bag.”

“I believe we cleared that up later that night.” Tiger smirked, and Dick tried really hard not to think about how his voice had dropped an octave. Those thoughts could _do things_ to him if he didn't keep them in check.

“Yeah, well, these two have heard enough about _that_ side of our relationship as it is.” He didn't even have to fake the embarrassment. Margaret and Herb's ribbing was still fresh in his mind.

Tom and Lisa looked a bit put-off by the conversation, though Lisa certainly hid it better. Dick decided she definitely knew what Tom had done, and, odds were, had probably helped him do it. She was the brains of the pair. Dick wouldn't have been surprised if she had planned the whole thing, and made it look like Tom was the only culprit. It was just too bad for her that Dick was finding it easier and easier to read her with every passing minute.

Dick and Tiger stuck around for dinner, where Dick continued to surreptitiously observe the pair. Lisa was obviously the dominant partner. It had probably been her idea to go on the run. Tom wasn't good at the undercover thing, and Lisa was only barely competent herself. Lisa trusted Tom enough to leave him alone while she was in the kitchen, and she hadn't given off a single signal of panic, even when alone with Tiger, so that shot down any potential theories about her being abducted to act as his partner. And Dick didn't get any of those vibes off Tom, either, so it was unlikely she'd forced him to do her bidding and set him up for the fall. He was a willing participant as much as she was, even if she probably had arranged things so he'd take the fall anyway. If he even knew she'd done that, which was unlikely.

Lisa had thrown together a large bowl of pasta primavera for dinner, full of fresh produce from the community garden. Tom poured drinks, but was otherwise a dead weight. Nobody was drinking alcohol, so it was all sodas and juices and water for the night. Dick had never seen the pair drink anything harder than a coke, though he and Tiger didn't indulge either, likely for the same reasons. Being undercover meant staying sharp at all times. Alcohol didn't help with that. And Tiger didn't drink anyway.

“Hey, Tom, I remember Gloria telling me her dog bites,” Dick said, trying to keep the conversation flowing despite being the only person actively invested in it half the time. “Any inside info on that?”

“It bites,” Tom replied. “My ankles were sore for a week. I won't walk it again. Gloria offered to double my pay, but no. Just no.”

Something unpleasant flitted across Lisa's face for a moment, before she brought her expression back to polite neutrality. “It normally bites strangers, Gloria told me. If you'd just get to know the thing...”

“No.”

“The dog doesn't bite me,” Tiger said.

“It's probably scared of you,” Dick replied.

“No. It demands I pet it every time I visit.”

“Ah. So you're a magnet for small, helpless creatures?”

“I married _you_ , did I not?”

“Ouch.” Dick was enjoying this banter way too much.

* * *

“Those two are a disaster,” Dick commented later that night as he and Tiger got ready for bed. “Seriously. It's embarrassing.”

“They are unused to espionage,” Tiger said from the bathroom.

“You can say that again. Today was pretty enlightening, at least.”

“Lisa is the mastermind.”

Dick pulled on his pyjama pants; he normally wore less while sleeping, but that wasn't an option while he was sharing a bed with Tiger. “Obviously. Though that's not saying much. Tom isn't very bright.” Dick pulled a large t-shirt on over his head; it was probably Tiger's but he'd officially claimed it some time last week. “We'll have to be careful. They're nervous, and that could end badly if they take it out on innocent bystanders.”

“Then we will have to hold their focus,” Tiger replied, stepping back into the bedroom. The t-shirt he slept in didn't do much do hide his muscles, and Dick forced himself to look away.

“Agreed.” Dick headed for the bathroom. “If they get antsy, we have to make sure it's directed at us and no one else.” He grabbed his toothbrush and squeezed some toothpaste onto it.

“Lisa's interest in cooking will keep us close to her,” said Tiger. Sheets rustled, presumably as he got into bed. “Tom will play along.”

“He's such a whiner,” Dick said around a mouthful of toothpaste froth. “Seriously. Does the guy like _anything_?”

“He murdered our agents and your main concern is his attitude?”

“You didn't have to put up with him all day, T. I did. Let me express my pain.”

Tiger grumbled something Dick quite catch, and probably didn't want to. He finished up in the bathroom and climbed into bed himself, sticking carefully to his side of the bed. Not that it would matter in the end. The morning always found them pressed close together. Damn subconscious.

“We'll have to update Helena in the morning,” Dick said, punching his pillow into a more comfortable shape.

“I can do that. Go to sleep.”

Dick tried. But he could just _feel_ Tiger where he lay mere feet away, and he had to remind himself this was his decision. Giving in just to have some temporary comfort would only hurt him in the long run.

But, God, he wanted to be held. And that was a problem.

He lay awake long enough for Tiger to fall asleep, snoring like a chainsaw. Kind of like Bruce, in a way, whenever the man feel into a deep enough sleep to snore at all. A freaking snore shouldn't have been endearing, but right now it was. Dick was in so much trouble, and there was nothing he could do about it except wait it out.

He did fall asleep eventually, and woke to the feeling of Tiger's chin digging into his shoulder and the man's warmth pressed against his back, just like the night before and the night before that. And so on. He checked the clock. There were still a few more hours to go before Tiger would get up to pray. So Dick settled back in and let himself enjoy it while he could.

Besides, Tiger was fast asleep and it wouldn't be right to wake him up just to get him to move away, right?

At least, that's what Dick told himself.

* * *

Dick had to put up with Tom's whining for the next two weeks. Tiger had the slightly more pleasant task of staying in Lisa's good books. Gloria unwittingly helped by providing recipes and ingredients from the community garden.

Dick had taken to bringing papers he had to grade whenever they visited, since having something to do for a while made the whole thing more tolerable. Tom had opened up a tiny bit, which on one hand was good for Dick because he didn't have expend so much energy keeping the conversation going, but on the other hand Tom was a bit of a prick.

“I don't know how you do it, man,” Tom said, watching Dick mark a math test.

“Do what?” Dick said mildly, double-checking his marking before moving onto the next question.

“Deal with kids everyday.”

“It's a gift.”

“I hate kids. They smell and they're loud and _why are they always sticky_?”

“I mostly deal with teenagers,” Dick replied. “They're still loud and smell a bit but at least they've learned how to stop getting sticky. Mostly. They're not so bad, really.”

“God. I just... if I was a teacher, I probably would've killed one of those brats by now.”

“Then I guess it's a good thing you're not one, then. This job isn't for the bad-tempered.”

“You seen Gloria's kids?”

“Quite a bit, yeah. What about them?”

“Their daughter's a piece of work. Like, where does she get off thinking she's better than everyone?”

“She's fifteen, Tom. Cut her some slack.”

“She makes me so _angry_ , Richard. God, I just wanna grab her neck and—”

“Okay! I am officially ending this conversation.” Dick finished marking the final test and put them all away in his bag. “Right now.”

“Oh, please. As if you've never wanted to do that. I mean, _look at her_. And the way she dresses...”

“I find that yelling children into obedience is effective enough if gentleness doesn't work,” Dick replied, deciding not to address that last comment because _how the hell did you deal with something like that_. “I've never fantasised about strangling a fifteen-year-old girl because I don't like her attitude. So can we stop talking about this before I feel the need to call her parents and tell them to keep you away from her at all costs?”

“Jesus, calm down. I was joking.”

“Uh-huh. Hilarious.”

Dick made a mental note to talk to Gloria and Steve anyway. Tom had already killed a number of trained Spyral agents. He wouldn't have much trouble killing an untrained teenager.

Tom sunk into his seat, crossing his arms. “Okay. Fine. We'll talk about something else. Did I tell you about the time that manager in the city fired me—”

“From the coffee shop because you added a non-halal syrup to a Muslim's coffee?” Dick finished. “Yes. Several times. Need I remind you I'm married to a Muslim?”

“Right. Yeah. Domestic tough guy Tahir. How'd you get him to submit to you like that?”

And there went Dick's patience. “Oh, for the love of fuck. Tahir isn't my slave. He doesn't submit to me. You know less than you think you do about Muslims and I am done talking to you about this.” He got up to join the others in the kitchen.

“Come on, man. I didn't mean anything by it.”

“Whatever.” Dick slipped through the door and shut it behind him again. “Smells good, you two. Not sure what it is, but it's probably delicious.”

Tiger dipped a spoon into a pot, blew on it and held it out for Dick. “Soup. Taste.”

Dick did. Salty. _Really_ salty. Tiger took one look at his face and shook his head.

“Still too salty, Lisa,” he said.

“Give me a sec,” Lisa said, in the midst of chopping some carrots. “I'll fix it.”

“Did you have enough of Tom?” Tiger asked Dick.

“Definitely. I need a breather.”

“He's just bad with people,” Lisa assured him.

“He's a flaming racist who fantasises about strangling teenage girls, more like.”

Lisa smiled sheepishly. “He grows on you. I promise.”

“Right. Listen, Tahir. If he starts going on about his former manager at a coffee shop, stop him. You don't want to hear it.”

“Noted.”

“He told you the manager story?” said Lisa. “Ugh. I'm so sorry. I'll talk to him.”

“I you think it'll help, go for it,” Dick said, but he had his doubts. At least tonight they weren't staying for dinner. Gloria and Steve had invited them over.

They ended up leaving Tom and Lisa's place a tiny bit earlier than planned, but at least that meant they would have a few minutes to centre themselves before having to play pretend again.

“You have no idea how close I came to punching Tom today,” Dick said as he changed shirts in their bedroom. “And now I have to talk to Gloria and Steve about him because he said some really disturbing things about wanting to strangle Emily. A grown man, wanting to strangle a teenage girl. And he had no problem with just telling me that. I'm a _teacher_ , for Christ's sake! What made him think I'd be okay with that?”

“We will not have to wait much longer,” Tiger assured him. “I will inform Helena of the potential risk to the girl. She may agree to hurry our timeline.”

“Yes, please. The sooner we get him and Lisa out of this community, the safer everyone will be. I may have blew things with Tom today, but, honestly, I'm past caring. Jeez. What an asshole.”

“Getting close to Lisa should be enough,” Tiger replied.

“You got the easy job.”

“I did. Lisa is easy to please.”

“Or maybe that's what she wants you to think.” Dick put on a different pair of shoes. “Ready to go?”

“Yes.”

“All right. Let's go warn these people about the adult man who apparently hates their daughter so much he'd actually like to kill her.”

“Do not give away any more information than you must.”

“Yeah, yeah. I know the drill.”

They headed over to Gloria and Steve's house. Steve let them in.

“'Evening, gentlemen,” he said. “Gloria's finishing up in the kitchen. Make yourselves comfortable.”

“I'll help her,” Tiger offered, heading for the kitchen.

“Can we talk?” Dick asked Steve. “Privately?”

“Uh, sure.” Steve led him upstairs into what was presumably his study. “You seem pretty serious today. Is something wrong?”

“Possibly,” Dick replied, closing the door. “Tahir and I just came from Tom and Lisa's place.”

“That... is not what I expected.”

“I would be surprised if it was,” Dick said. “Listen. Tom's opened up to me a bit, which I thought was going to be a good thing, but it's led to some pretty disturbing revelations. About Emily.”

That wiped the smile off Steve's face. “What?”

“Emily hasn't done anything wrong,” Dick clarified. “But Tom. Well. He really doesn't like her. I mean _really_. He actually told me he wanted to strangle her. And I don't mean in that exaggerated way like you would with a random driver who cut you off in traffic. I'm actually worried for Emily's safety.”

“And he just admitted that to you?”

“He actually thought my being a teacher would make me hate children rather than care about their well-being.” Dick pinched the bridge of his nose. He could feel a headache coming on. “Anyway, sorry for putting that on you, but I thought you should know.”

“You did the right thing. Thank you. I'll make sure Tom stays away from her from now on.”

“Okay, good. He started saying some rather creepy things about the way she dresses as well, but I didn't let him finish. Just... be careful, okay?”

“I will. Christ. Okay. Let's get downstairs. I'll tell Gloria later.”

* * *

Tom was more careful with what he said after that. Dick really didn't want to be anywhere near him, but he had no choice in the matter. He rationalised to himself that he'd be better able to protect Emily if he had some idea what was going on with the man. It was a weak justification at best.

Helena agreed to push the timeline forward a few days now that a civilian was at risk. Dick and Tiger spent the night before planning their attack, sitting up in bed in their pyjamas.

“Tom seems more like a brute-force kind of person,” Dick said. “He'll be more likely to go for the obvious attacks. Now that we know Lisa is involved, how he managed to get the jump on our agents makes a lot more sense.”

“Lisa is a tactician,” Tiger added. “She is weaker, but smarter. She will fight dirty.”

“Agreed. Tom will be easier to get mad. Then he'll be off-balance. Then he'll be easier to predict. Lisa won't let that happen to herself. We'll need to take her out as quickly as possible. Failing that, we wear her down until she starts making mistakes from exhaustion.”

“Only if necessary,” Tiger replied. “If possible, we take them both out quickly.”

“Yeah. That's Plan A. Plan B is what we're establishing now.”

“Plan B: make Tom angry, do not let Lisa gain an advantage.”

“Plan C is simply outlasting them,” Dick said, smoothing the covers over his legs. “That's riskier, but we can pull it off if we have to.”

“Good. You know your strengths. I know mine. Now we need—”

A noise against the wall facing the street. Tiger slowly pulled their bedcovers away. The lights went out. Power cut. Tiger lay down, awake but pretending not to be. Dick reached for the escrima he kept under the mattress and he quietly slipped to the floor to hide.

The window slid open. Soft footfalls on the carpet. A smack of skin against skin.

“Did you really think I would sleep through that?” said Tiger. A snap of bone, a muffled cry. “Pathetic.”

“He didn't come alone, you—” Dick threw a stick and hit Lisa right in the temple. She fell to the floor in silence. Well, that was easy.

Tom was curled up on the floor, quietly sobbing.

“I expected better from you two,” Dick said, crouching beside him. Tiger remained upright, watching for movement.

“So you did know who we are,” Tom hissed through his teeth. “Couldn't be sure. The lady wanted to be safe.”

“The lady just got knocked out,” Dick said brightly. “Just like you.” A smack to the head and Tom was out, too. Tiger grabbed some rope from deep in the closet and tied them both up while Dick cuffed their hands. Better safe than sorry.

“I will contact Helena,” Tiger said. “She can send a team for clean-up.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Dick yawned. “That barely got the adrenaline pumping. So sad.”

Tiger looked at him with amusement, and Dick had to remember how to breathe.

 


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dick and Tiger have to stay in the neighbourhood for a little while longer. It's hard for them, in more ways than one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This will be the second-last chapter.

And then it was over. Helena ordered Dick and Tiger to stay in the community for a few more weeks so nobody suspected they were connected to Tom and Lisa's disappearance.

“All right, I'll say it,” said Steve one day after school, while he and Dick were sharing a bowl of chips in Steve and Gloria's living room. “I'm not sad Tom's gone. Shame about Lisa, but if it makes Emily safer, I'll deal with it.”

“I don't blame you,” Dick replied. “Tahir's a bit gutted about Lisa, but we're glad Emily's safe. Tom... wasn't the sort of person who inspired feelings of loyalty. Believe me, I tried. Don't spread that around, though. People who don't know what you and I know about him will probably find it insensitive.”

“Margaret was planning to catch up with you two soon,” Steve said. “Did she get around to that?”

“Yeah, she caught us last night. Brought us some sympathy cake. Tahir's not cooking much at the moment. Reminds him too much of Lisa.” Well, in reality Tiger wasn't cooking much because he was hanging out for extraction and was only putting a token effort into the role he was playing. But it was a convenient lie.

“Is he all right?”

Dick sighed. “Not really. He and Lisa really bonded. To tell the truth, it's affecting our relationship a bit. I'm trying to be patient with him.” Tiger also hadn't put much effort into keeping up appearances regarding their marriage. Dick was partially glad for it—the affection hurt even more now that it was nearly over—but, at the same time, he was frustrated that Tiger was dropping the ball. Like Dick had never meant anything to him at all. Dick stopped that thought before he let it upset him too much.

“Sounds rough,” Steve commented. “Where is he today?”

“Probably down at the garden,” Dick replied. “That's usually where he goes when he's not at home.”

“Gloria's there today,” Steve told him. “She'll make sure he's okay.”

“I might go check on him soon. I'm normally good at reading people, but he's been a bit more closed-off than usual with me. I'm not entirely sure what's going on in his mind.” That was the truth, though it wasn't exactly a new thing.

“I need to grab some milk for tomorrow's breakfast. I'll walk with you.”

“Thanks.”

They finished off the chips and headed into town. Steve left Dick at the community garden and continued on the way to the store.

Dick entered the garden. Tiger was tending some shrubs Dick didn't know the name of. Gloria spotted him first.

“There you are,” she said quietly. “Come on. Let's talk.” She led him to the garden shed, out of Tiger's earshot. Tiger undoubtedly knew Dick was there, but was content to pretend otherwise.

“What'd you want to talk about?” Dick asked Gloria.

“You and Tahir seem really down,” she said. “I understand you were both pretty close with Lisa. Poor girl. Shame she got mixed up with Tom. I know Steve thinks whatever happened to Lisa happened to Tom, but, well, I think it's more likely he did something to her. Especially after those things he said about Emily.”

“It's possible,” Dick replied. “No one knows but them, I guess.”

“I'm sending Emily and Braden interstate to live with their grandparents,” Gloria continued. “Just in case. But that's not what I wanted to talk about. Obviously Lisa's disappearance has been hard on you and Tahir.”

“It has,” Dick agreed, though not for the reasons Gloria thought. “I was just talking to Steve about it.”

“And Tahir was talking to me,” Gloria replied. “It sounds like the both of you need counselling. Maybe even marriage counselling. I'd hate for this to be the thing that separates the two of you. You're both so lovely together.”

“I... thank you.”

Gloria dug into her pocket. “Steve and I saw a marriage counsellor a few years ago. This woman is a miracle-worker.” She handed Dick a card. “And this person helped Emily with some... troubles a few years ago, when my sister died. She's good at helping people deal with loss.” She handed Dick a second card.

“Thank you,” Dick repeated, not knowing what else to say. There was no point getting counselling, but Gloria's heart was in the right place. The fact she cared at all made him feel a little bit better about the whole situation.

* * *

Tiger knew the instant Dick entered the garden, even as he kept his head down and focused on weeding. Gloria intercepted Dick quietly and led him away to the garden shed. Tiger pulled a weed out with unnecessary force. She'd already tried to talk to Tiger about marriage counselling. Tiger had politely turned her down, but the woman would not take no for an answer. And they all knew Dick would be too nice to say no in the first place.

Tiger just wanted to be back at headquarters already. This charade had worn thin. He needed space away from Dick, away from all these frustrating and pointless feelings the man stirred up in him. Dick had already made it clear he was not interested in anything further. Tiger needed time to nurse his wounds in peace, and he couldn't damn well do that if he had to see the man every day of his life. Every time he woke to find Dick in his arms _yet again_ just made the wound bleed faster.

He spotted Dick heading over to him, stuffing something into his pocket. Probably those business cards Gloria had tried to give him first. Tiger kept working, refusing to acknowledge Dick's presence until necessary.

A hand on his back. A kiss on his temple.

“Hey,” Dick said quietly. “How're the weeds?”

“Stubborn,” Tiger growled, tugging another one free.

“Gloria wants us to get marriage counselling.”

“I know. She tried to give me the cards first.”

“I hope you weren't too rude when you rejected her.”

“I tried not to be.”

Dick snorted. “Right.”

Tiger pulled off his gloves, having found all the weeds he could from this angle. Dick helped him to his feet. His heart rate spiked at the feeling of Dick's hand on his, which was ridiculous. He tried not to let it show on his face, which was harder than he would have liked. There was a strange look in Dick's eyes, which disappeared the instant he realised Tiger was watching him.

Tiger shook off his hand, long after he should have let go. “We should return home.” He was referring to their house, but, honestly, he would much rather be back at St Hadrian's, which was the closest thing he had to a home these days.

They didn't touch each other again for the entire walk home. Tiger wanted to reach out, to hold Dick's hand like they used to, but he couldn't do it. The mission was nearly over. He couldn't complicate things any further. Not when they were nearly free.

And then Tiger would go off on his own for a few weeks and get this man out of his head best he could. He couldn't work like this. He wasn't supposed to feel this way about his mission partner. He'd muddied the waters so much that night they'd slept together for the first time. It shouldn't have happened, but it did. And it was his fault.

If anyone at Spyral found out just how much he had fallen for another agent, let alone a former _cape_ , he would never be able to live it down. And Helena, with her constant prying, clearly knew something was up already. She'd had condoms and lubricant put into their bedroom, for crying out loud!

He was supposed to be better than this. He was the Tiger King of Kandahar, not some blushing adolescent. He should have been so easily swayed by a pretty face.

And Dick definitely did have a pretty face. And pretty... other things. Tiger was intimately familiar with all the pretty things about that man. He'd had multiple opportunities to explore them, to touch them, to...

This was not a helpful line of thought. Not when he was trying to _stop_ thinking about Dick.

He made a beeline for the shower as soon as they returned to the house. He needed some privacy to release the tension he was holding. And he hoped against hope that Dick hadn't picked up on a certain amount of tension in a more intimate area of his body.

He was barely in the shower when he started touching himself, biting back a moan and channelling it into a hiss instead. The shower spray was still cold, but he paid it no heed, far too focused on the heat pooling between his legs. He rested his forehead against his arm, braced against the wall, and gripped himself painfully, punishingly tight. He was not gentle with himself, jerking roughly on his cock, just wanting it to end already so he could move onto more important things.

But his body did not want to rush today, and he had to slow down, gently twist his hand around the shaft, twitching as droplets of water pelted down against the sensitive head of his cock.

Unbidden, images of Dick splayed out, begging for Tiger to fuck him, sprang into his mind. There were plenty to choose from, even though they'd only had sex a few times. Tiger let it happen. He didn't have the strength to stop them anyway.

Dick's lean, scarred, muscled body, slick with sweat and trembling at Tiger's touch.

Dick's legs, resting comfortably by his ears like he put them there everyday, toes curling with each of Tiger's thrusts.

And— _oh—_ Dick's ass. Taking Tiger's entire length, pulsing as he drew closer and closer to climax.

Tiger spilled over his hand, growling out Dick's name.

He slumped against the shower wall, breaths coming shallow and quick.

Somehow, he didn't think this session had solved the problem. Just like the ones he had tried before.

He hoped Helena would extract them from this place soon. He wasn't sure how much longer his resolve could hold out.

He headed down to the living room once he'd gotten himself under control. Dick was seated on the couch, frowning into space.

“I have heard if the wind changes...” Tiger began.

“It's a bit late to grow a sense of humour,” Dick replied shortly. “We've got a problem.”

Tiger fell onto the couch, biting back a sigh. “I am not in the mood for games.”

“Right. Sorry.” Dick kicked off his shoes and tucked his feet under him on the couch. “Just finished talking to Helena. She wasn't convinced Tom and Lisa were clever enough to take out our agents by themselves. They weren't exactly hard to beat the other night.”

“And?”

“Helena interrograted them with her hypnos,” Dick continued. “She found the mastermind.”

“Who is it?”

“You're not going to believe me.”

Tiger was tempted to smack Dick right in his pretty face if he drew this out any longer. “Just tell me.”

“Gloria.”

* * *

“This is ridiculous,” Tiger complained later that night as they suited up. Dick rolled his eyes at him.

“You've said that at least five times.”

Tiger had mellowed out a bit after his shower—Dick didn't want to know what went on in there to make that happen. Or maybe he did, but was just really in denial about it...

Okay, time and place, Dick. Time and place. Fantasise later.

“I will keep saying it until it is no longer true.”

“Please tell me you're going to shut up during the covert parts of the evening, at least.”

“I will try.”

Dick kind of wished Tiger had never found a sense of humour. It always showed up at the worst possible time.

“Gloria,” Tiger muttered, lacing up his boots. “Why Gloria?”

“PTA mum Gloria. Community garden queen Gloria. I _know_. What kind of killer tries to recommend marriage counselling? Wait. Don't answer that. Harley Quinn totally would. And probably the Scarecrow. What is it with psychiatrists and supervillainy?”

“I am not the right person to ask.”

“Fair enough. At least Steve ended up going with the kids to their grandparents'. If that's even where they're going. We should be free to grab Gloria without civilian casualities.”

“If Steve is even a civilian.”

“Eh, jury's out on that one. If he's not, Spyral will find him eventually. The kids are definitely civilians, though. I hope Steve isn't in on it. I'd hate to make those kids grow up without either of their parents. Speaking as an orphan, it's not a good experience.”

“Understood,” Tiger said quietly, about as close to tender as he ever got with his clothes on.

“Do you think it's possible Spyral won't kill Gloria?” Dick knew it was a foolish question, but he couldn't get the kids out of his mind now.

“Helena will be fair,” Tiger assured him. “If she cooperates, she may even offer her a job.”

“Here's hoping.” Dick sighed and got up. “Go time?”

“Yes.”

They slipped out of the house and found the back door to the house. Dick waited, hanging above the window to Gloria's bedroom while Tiger went through the house itself. The instant the light switched on, he let slid the window open and let himself in.

Gloria was sitting up in bed, a pistol pointed at Tiger's chest. “Spyral, the both of you? Figures.”

“We're not interested in killing you,” Dick said.

“Speak for yourself,” Tiger growled.

“Hush,” said Gloria. “Let the pretty one talk.”

“Aren't you a little old for me, ma'am?”

“Talk.”

“All right, keep your knickers on,” Dick replied lightly. “So you've got us pegged. Well done. Our superiors just got done interrogating your underlings. They gave you up in mere minutes.”

“I knew hiding them here was a mistake. Are they dead?”

“Yes.”

“Good riddance to Tom, that little snot-nosed bastard. I was going to kill him myself after what he said about my daughter.”

“I have never heard you swear before, Gloria, if that _is_ your real name.”

“I play my part well,” Gloria replied. “Most days it's not even a part. It's my life. And my real name, yes. Shame about Lisa. She had potential.”

“She did,” Tiger agreed.

“Mind me asking why you hired them to kill Spyral agents?”

“Spyral killed my sister,” Gloria admitted. “I think I mentioned her once. Emily took the loss hard.”

“I remember you mentioning that,” Dick replied. “Was your sister involved in anything?”

“No. She was collateral damage. Spyral didn't even try to save her life.”

“Then I get why you'd be angry,” Dick replied. “Do you know who was responsible?”

“I believe so. If I'm right, they're dead. The other agents came after me, so I had Tom and Lisa take them out. Mostly Tom. He was going to take the fall for it all, but you two were too smart for that, obviously.”

“We still have to take you in,” Dick said, “but it sounds like this has been a big misunderstanding.”

“If you can believe anything she says,” Tiger interjected.

“We can confirm her story with our superiors,” Dick replied. “Shouldn't be too hard. I'd rather not rid two children of their mother if I can help it. Pack a bag, Gloria. We'll have people here to take you into custody in a few minutes. Don't try anything. My partner is far more trigger-happy than I am. And give me the gun.”

Gloria handed the gun over without any fanfare and set about packing a bag. A few agents were by shortly and took her away.

“I would have killed her,” Tiger said quietly as he watched them lead her away.

“Killing people isn't always the answer, T,” Dick replied. “There's been enough death these past few weeks. Let's leave it at that.”

Tiger watched him curiously for a moment. “Dick Grayson, you are a very strange man.”

“Am I also an idiot?”

“Not today.”

Dick snorted. “I'll take what I can get with you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to use your idea, ilovelocust. Cheers.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dick and Tiger are called back to St Hadrian's for their debriefing. And to hide from each other for the rest of their lives. Well, that was the plan, anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Canonical ableist language again.

Dick was both relieved and disappointed when they finally returned to headquarters. It was a relief to no longer have to hide himself around Tiger, but at the same time he was already starting to miss being in close quarters with the man. It was a weird feeling.

Helena was wrapping up their debriefing. “Your friend Gloria will be assessed by our professionals, who will recommend a course of action. We have three options: execution, freedom and employment. Given the circumstances, execution is unlikely. We have already confirmed the agents responsible for her sister's death were killed by Gloria's operatives. There should be no further bad blood affecting relations.”

“That's good to hear,” Dick replied. “Do we know where she learned her espionage skills?”

“A secret cell in the special forces,” Helena replied. “An all-women team. By all accounts, they were very effective while they lasted. Most were killed in action. Gloria was given a severance package when the remainder of the team was dissolved. She moved to the suburbs to raise a family. She likely would never have raised a gun again had her sister not been killed. We're reviewing operating protocols to ensure something like that never happens again.”

“Glad you didn't kill her _now_ , Tiger?” Dick said.

“Shut up.”

“You decision to stay your hand was the right one this time,” Helena said. “That is not always the case.”

“You know how I operate, Helena,” Dick replied calmly. Helena ignored him.

“I'll give you two some time off to re-acclimate,” she said. “Make sure you're training in the meantime.”

Tiger left first. Dick felt like a part of him left with him. It was weird. And the exact opposite of how he wanted to feel right now.

“Is something wrong, 37?” Helena asked.

“No,” Dick lied. “Just gotta get my head back on straight. Going undercover for so long is... weird.”

“I'll bet,” Helena said quietly as Dick left her office, barely loud enough for him to hear.

Dick did some time in the gym, reacquainting himself with his exercises that he'd had to abandon due to the lack of facilities while undercover. The dull burn in his muscles was a welcome feeling, keeping his mind off things for a while.

Flying on the trapeze brought that familiar exhilaration as all his worries were left behind on the ground. He spotted a familiar turban by the door for all of three seconds before it disappeared. He shook his head to clear it and took off again.

He was ravenous by the time he left the gym for dinner. And pleasantly exhausted. He would sleep well tonight. Hopefully.

But when he finally went to his room for the night, all he could think of was the last time Tiger had been in here with him. He could all-too-vividly recall Tiger's fingers digging bruisingly into his hips, shoving him against the door and plundering his mouth with his skilled tongue.

Dick could feel the blood in his body rushing south, and he tugged off his shirt and sat on the bed, palming himself through his trousers.

Remembering a thigh rubbing against his hardening cock. Slick fingers easing inside him. Threatening to find other uses for his mouth if he didn't shut up.

Dick unzipped his pants to grip his growing erection. These thoughts weren't going away. He had to deal with them. He stroked himself.

Tiger pushing inside him. Gently. Giving him time to adjust. Lifting his legs and thrusting deep, hitting all the right spots. Dick's blunt nails digging into Tiger's shoulders, breaths coming in gasps.

Dick kicked off his pants and lay on his back, slipping a slicked finger inside himself as his other hand kept jerking his cock. He could practically hear the sounds of flesh smacking together, of sighs and breathed curses flitting between the two of them.

The pace quickening. Tiger's hands on the headboard. Muscles bulging. Skin slick with sweat. Dick digging his nails deeper, squeezing his legs tighter, moving his hips to match the frenzied thrusts.

Dick was so close. He squeezed his eyes shut, moaning, toes curling, legs spread. He took another finger.

Tiger's hands gripping Dick's ass with everything he had. Driving himself deeper and deeper. Dick clenching and coming around him. Tiger thrusting deep and pulsing, releasing inside him. That dirty, biting kiss.

Dick came, spilling onto his stomach, sighing Tiger's name.

Finally spent, he rolled over and fell asleep, Tiger's chiselled body filling his dreams.

* * *

Dick didn't see Tiger again after that day, which suited him just fine. He needed to get over this infatuation before it hurt him or someone else. He didn't have room in his life for someone like Tiger, who would undoubtedly end up breaking his heart. Or Dick would break his. Dick was betraying Spyral, whereas Tiger was their top agent. Things would eventually end badly between them and there was nothing Dick could do to stop it.

That was all assuming Dick's feelings were requited in the first place. Which they were not. They couldn't be. The two of them were too different. The sex had been convenient. The affection, to Tiger, a necessity to keep Dick's state of mind on track. It had never been about...

What, love?

Ha.

Spyral wasn't the place for that kind of thinking. Love wasn't for spies. Hell, love was barely for vigilantes and superheroes in the first place. How many of his own relationships had ended badly because of that life? How many people in the superhero community had witnessed their loved ones die right in front of them? It was like some power above them all had decided that superheroes did not get to lead happy lives. Which was bullshit. And unfair. But that didn't change the facts.

Dick wasn't good at dealing with facts that contradicted what he wanted.

For all the reasons in the world that made it a profoundly terrible idea, he still wanted Tiger.

Damn it.

That thought put him in a sour mood for days. He forced himself into a routine in an effort get his mind off it. Eat, train, sleep. He didn't speak to anyone. It didn't work. Tiger was on his mind constantly. That part of him that had left with Tiger still hadn't come back, leaving him with an uncomfortable hole inside him that he couldn't do anything about.

Helena found him late one morning, taking out his frustrations on a punching bag.

“Yes?” Dick ground out, punching the bag with everything he had.

“Personal debriefing. Let's go.” Helena headed for the door without waiting for him to process what she'd just said. He chased after her.

“The hell is a 'personal debriefing', Helena?”

“Be patient.”

“I'm not in the mood for demands today.”

“Too bad.” They reached her office. She shut the door behind them. “Sit.”

Dick sat in front of her desk. “Now will you tell me what this is about?”

“I need to evaluate Agent 1's performance during your recent mission,” Helena replied, taking her seat behind the desk.

“How so?”

“I don't usually assign Tiger for long-term undercover operations,” Helena replied. “He's more useful to me on shorter combat and stealth missions. I need to know if I should re-evaluate that opinion.”

“Oh. Well. It took him some time to warm up to it, but he was pretty good once he had.”

“Did he display the appropriate amount of affection towards you?”

“What?” Ah. Helena was trying to be subtle in the way she asked about their relationship. The condoms provided in the bedroom sprung to his mind. But he played along. “Right. He did. Yes.”

“How often did he kiss you.”

“I don't know. A lot?”

“Give me a daily estimate.”

“It depends,” Dick replied, scratching the back of his head. “Sometimes three times a day, sometimes more than ten.”

“I see.” Helena folded her hands on the desk. “And did his demeanour change towards you when he was alone? Did any of that affection bleed into the time you didn't need to play your roles in front of people?”

“There was a little bleed-through, yeah, but that's normal, right? It can be hard to switch off sometimes.”

“And his demeanour?” Helena prompted.

“Did it change when we were alone?” Dick repeated her question. “Of course it did. Tiger's a professional. I mean, he brought me several cups of tea when I had that bad day at the school and let me nap on him and the kisses kept happening sometimes because it's hard to switch off, but he said... he said...” Oh, that lying bastard.

“He said...?” Helena prompted.

“He said he was taking care of me because I was the lead agent on the mission and needed to be at my best,” Dick finished. “But, honestly. I shouldn't have swallowed that. I mean, we...”

“...yes?”

Dick groaned. “We had sex, okay? And you knew it was going to happen.”

“I might've.” Helena was definitely hiding amusement behind her stern expression.

“And we ended up cuddling in bed a lot even when we did try to back off on showing too much affection when we were alone. And I swear he was always in my personal space when we were awake and... shit. Okay. Tiger's right. I am an idiot.”

“Glad you finally noticed.” Helena was trying to hide a smirk, and not entirely succeeding.

Dick's forehead hit the desk. “Jesus. Kill me now.”

“Don't be like that,” Helena said warmly. “Tiger will be finishing up noon prayers. If you go now, he'll finish just as you arrive. Go get him.”

“Right. Yeah.” Suddenly Dick's concerns about the sustainability of a relationship with Tiger didn't matter, now that he knew his feelings were reciprocated. He dashed out the door, then doubled back to stick his head back in. “Thank you!”

“Go!”

Dick laughed and charged down the corridor. The sun seemed brighter today than it had a few minutes ago. Gosh, he was positively giddy. And probably a total embarrassment to himself the way he was practically skipping all the way to the chapel but who cared? Certainly not Dick.

Tiger was just emerging as Dick got there. Stepped into Tiger's path, semi-breathless. Tiger raised one eyebrow.

“Yes?”

“Can we talk?” Dick asked. “Privately?”

“About?”

“Well, it's not very private if I just tell you, is it?”

Tiger raised his eyes to the sky for a moment and took a deep breath. “Okay. Come.”

Dick fell into step beside him. “Where are we going?”

“Somewhere private.”

“Which is...?”

Tiger smirked. “Well, it's not very private if I just tell you, is it?”

“Point taken.” Dick obediently followed him through the building, into a remote corner Dick had never seen before. There, Tiger opened a door and pushed Dick inside.

It was a bedroom. “Yours, I take it?” Dick asked.

“Yes. Be flattered. Few people know its location.”

“Okay, yes, I am flattered. Thank you.”

Tiger sat on the edge of the bed. “You wanted to talk?”

“Helena made me realise something,” Dick said.

“Yes?”

“I'm an idiot.”

A moment passed.

“And?”

“Okay, first of all: ouch.” Dick sat on the bed beside him. “Second of all: I like you. A lot. I could actually be falling in love with you. The thought terrifies me but that's beside the point. Now, this whole time, I've assumed you couldn't be feel the same way about me. That's the idiot part.”

“Dick...”

“Let me finish. I've been completely blind to how you feel, and I've done some things to hurt you in the process. That was wrong of me. I should've been more observant. I'm supposed to be good at reading people, but I failed when it came to you. I should've trusted my gut, but my head got in the way because I was afraid to get my hopes up that you could return my feelings.”

“I did the same thing,” Tiger said quietly.

“So we're both idiots?”

“Apparently.”

“Well, we've come to our senses now.”

“We have.”

“We could do something about it,” Dick suggested. “Now that we've stopped dancing around each other.”

“It won't work,” Tiger replied. “Spyral is not... casual relationships are acceptable, but _this_? They will not allow it.”

“Helena seemed pretty willing to allow it.”

“Helena is not the authority you think she is. There are people above her who do not share her views.”

“Well, fuck those people.”

“That will not persuade them.”

“Are you joking or just being really literal today?”

“Guess.”

“No.”

“We cannot be together,” Tiger said firmly. “You know it will not end well for us.”

“I stopped caring about ten minutes ago.” Dick grasped Tiger's hand, squeezing firmly. “Listen, okay? We can't control the future. Maybe it'll end in tears. Maybe we'll find a way to make it work. Who knows? I don't want to think about the future anymore. The only thing we can control is the present.”

“I _am_ controlling it.”

“You're freaking out over the future. That doesn't seem very controlled to me. I'm done with that, okay? I'm here. I'm offering. If it ends someday, then it ends. But we don't have to worry about that right now.”

“What if Spyral gives you an order you cannot follow?” Tiger asked. “What if they order me to kill you because of that?”

“You could just, you know, not do that,” Dick replied. “You could suddenly be overcome with incompetence and _accidentally_ let me escape. Are you saying you'd be willing to kill me if we weren't together?”

“No, that is not—”

“Check and mate.”

“Idiot.”

“Takes one to know one.”

“How old are you? Eight? Eight-year-olds in your country say those things, yes?”

Dick kissed Tiger's scruffy cheek. “You're cute when you're defensive.”

Tiger scowled. “I am not cute.”

“Yes, yes, you're a terrifying machine of destruction and pain. All tremble before you, blah blah blah.”

“Will you please be serious?”

“Only because you asked nicely.”

Tiger sighed.

“Okay,” Dick said. “Look. I know I'm being pushy. If, when we've argued ourselves out, you still don't want to pursue this, I'll go. I'll talk to Helena and see if we can change partners. It'll take time for me to get over you. No doubt it'll be the same for you. It won't be ideal, but we'll get through it. But, in the meantime, I'm going to fight you on this. Because that's what you do for things you care about.”

“Dick,” Tiger breathed. “This could ruin us. Spyral is my home. I... cannot lose it.”

Dick felt a wallop of guilt in his stomach. He was working to hurt Spyral, possibly even to bring it down from the inside if it couldn't be steered towards more ethical operations that kept well away from Batman and the rest of the superhero community.

“You were raised in Gotham City, yes?” Tiger continued. “What would you do if you could never return?”

“That's practically my situation right now, T.” The reminder was painful, but necessary. He couldn't ask Tiger to give up his home just for him. That wasn't fair.

“I...” Tiger trailed off. Dick pressed close, resting his head on the man's shoulder.

“I won't ask you to give up your home,” he said softly. “What would happen if they didn't know how serious our relationship was? If they thought we were just having sex?”

“They may allow it. We would have to be careful.” Tiger pressed his lips to Dick's scalp. “I... want to be with you. If we do this, you must promise me something.”

“Anything.”

“If Spyral finds out how serious we are, we end it.”

That seemed a reasonable request, if painful to think about. “Deal. Promise not to kill me even if they order you to?”

“Deal.”

Dick nuzzled his shoulder. “I love you.”

Tiger tensed. “I... love you, too.” The instant the words were out of him, he relaxed again.

Dick nudged him in the ribs. “You big softy.”

“Do not make me regret this.”

“I'm too pretty for that.”

“You are very pretty, that is true.”

Dick lifted his head and caught Tiger's lips in a kiss. “So, I've been wondering something this whole time but we were a bit busy with other stuff for me to ask.”

Tiger looked like Alfred did after dealing with hyperactive teenagers for a full day. “...yes?”

“Why is your bed so hard?”

“Is that a serious question?”

“It is. Look at this.” He jammed his fist into the bed and it barely sank in. “How do you sleep on that?”

Tiger shrugged. “The original mattress was too soft for me.”

“Couldn't sleep?”

Tiger shook his head.

“Okay, yeah, I can work with that.” He looked up at Tiger through lowered lashes, knowing full well he could have almost anyone eating out of the palm of his hand with that look alone. “More leverage for the sexytimes, I guess.”

Tiger was, apparently, an exception to that rule. “Do not use that word ever again.”

“What? Sexytimes? It has a nice ring to it.”

“No.”

“Spoilsport.” Dick climbed into Tiger's lap. “So, speaking of sexytimes...”

Tiger steadied Dick by the hips. “You are trying my patience.”

“So what can I say? Time for the sex bit? Special hug time? Horizontal tango?”

“Keep using ridiculous names and it will be the 'sleeping alone' bit.”

“Well, that hurts my feelings.”

Tiger mashed their lips together for a quick and dirty kiss. “Shut up,” he said as they separated.

“Or, what? You'll find another use for my mouth? You haven't made good on that threat yet.”

“I will today.”

“Good. I've been eagerly awaiting this moment.” Dick slid off Tiger and onto the floor, kneeling between the other man's legs. “How's this? Or would you rather stand so you can fuck my mouth?”

“This will do. Stop talking and suck.”

Dick gave him a half-assed salute and unbuttoned his pants. Tiger was already halfway to hard. And going commando today, apparently. Dick licked a wet stripe along the man's shaft, revelling in the way Tiger's breath caught in his throat. He swirled his tongue around the head of Tiger's cock until it was well and truly hard and the man knotted his fingers in Dick's hair. Dick took the hint and swallowed him down. Tiger was heavy and thick in his mouth, just the way Dick liked it. He bobbed his head a few times to gauge Tiger's reaction, before he got his tongue in on the action and _really_ went for it.

Tiger was gasping above him, fingers flexing in his hair, thighs spasming on either side of his head. Dick took him deeper, letting out a soft hum that had Tiger's fingernails digging into his scalp.

“ _Hgn_. Enough.” Tiger pulled him back by the hair. Dick grinned up at him.

“Was that too much for you?” he teased. Tiger rolled his eyes and dragged Dick up into his lap again.

“I would rather finish this differently,” he growled in his ear, pulling Dick's shirt off.

“Okay. Sure. I'm with you.”

Tiger slowly trailed his fingers along Dick's ribs, calloused thumbs brushing his nipples. He pressed a kiss against the pulse point beneath Dick's jaw.

Dick wrapped his arms around Tiger's broad shoulders. “Mm. Now I'm _definitely_ with you. So, slow and steady today? Makes a nice change.”

“You say that now,” Tiger growled. “In a few minutes, I will have you begging for more.”

Dick chuckled. “Now _there's_ the man I remember fucking me into the mattress that one fine evening we forgot to close the windows and accidentally gave an elderly couple a glimpse into our sex life.”

Tiger lifted Dick by the hips and carried him into the centre of the bed. Dick kicked his shoes off and let Tiger pull his pants down, resting back on his elbows.

“You should lose your pants, too,” he said. “Not that they're doing much anyway.”

Tiger kicked them off, along with his underwear. “Happy?”

“Almost.” Dick pulled his briefs off and tossed them across the room. “There we go.”

“Lie down.” Tiger pressed his palm against Dick's chest, pushing him to lie on his back. “Now behave.”

“I always behave.”

Tiger nipped Dick's inner thigh in response.

“Okay, you're right. I'm an asshole.”

“Speaking of assholes...” Tiger pushed Dick's legs apart and ducked his head. Dick bit back a squeak as he felt the man's tongue slide into his hole.

“Your sense of humour...” Dick sucked in a breath, “always shows up... at the worst possible time.”

Tiger's soft laugh sent vibrations through his tongue and into Dick's body. “Give me the lubricant,” he said before diving back in. Dick could just reach the bottle on the nightstand and passed it to Tiger's waiting hand.

A finger soon replaced the tongue, hitting all the right spots inside him in seconds. Dick grabbed a fistful of the blanket.

“Who the hell taught you to be this good?” he groaned. “I wanna send them flowers.”

“He would prefer an assault rifle.”

“Two of a kind, eh?”

Tiger added a second finger. “Not as much as you might think.”

Dick wriggled himself into a more comfortable position. “Sounds like a heck of a story.”

“One I will not be sharing.”

Dick twitched as Tiger's fingers rubbed a sensitive spot. “Fair enough.”

Tiger kissed Dick's knee. “Are you comfortable?”

Dick let his legs inch further apart. “Yes. Very.”

“Good.”

“So you do care.”

Tiger shoved his fingers in deep, earning a gasp from Dick. He added one more finger.

“This is nice,” Dick said after a while.

“Hm?” Tiger had been focused on other things, namely getting Dick ready to take his rock-hard cock.

“You, me, your fingers up my ass. It's like a fairytale.” Dick moved his hips in Tiger's direction, encouraging him to press even deeper.

“Clearly we are moving too slowly if you can still talk,” Tiger replied.

“I'm more than happy to speed things up. I feel like I'm missing something. Spoiler alert: it's your penis. In me.”

Tiger sighed and pulled his fingers out. He reached for a condom on the nightstand, kissing Dick on the way. Dick plucked the condom from his hands and unwrapped it himself.

“I learned a little trick from a previous relationship,” he said. “Lie down and prepare to have your mind—and other body parts—blown.”

Tiger rolled his eyes but complied. Dick straddled his thighs and carefully placed the now-unwrapped condom between his lips, holding the tip against the roof of his mouth with his tongue. Had to keep the air out of it somehow. He lowered himself down and slowly, carefully, rolled it down Tiger's cock.

“Showoff,” Tiger muttered when all was said and done.

Dick slicked him up with some extra lube to make up for what had been left behind in his mouth. “You love it.” He set the bottle aside. “Mind if I take a seat, big guy?”

Tiger guided Dick by the hips onto his cock, letting him slowly sink down until he'd taken him to the hilt. Tiger sat up, the change in angle making Dick shake, and pulled him to his chest. Dick slowly rocked back and forth, burying his face against Tiger's shoulder. This was different from all the other times they'd had sex, where Tiger had readily taken the reigns and fucked Dick senseless until they were both gasping and exhausted.

That had been sex. The kind of fucking that all the crass words in the world had been invented to describe.

This was intimacy. The thing Dick had been craving this whole time.

Tiger gently stroked Dick's back as they rocked together, whispering endearments both in English and not. Dick ran his fingers through Tiger's short hair and slowly trailed kisses along the man's skin—shoulders, neck, cheeks, lips.

Tiger lay him down on the bed, lazily kissing him as he took over the rhythm, his hips slowly rolling into Dick's body. They stayed close, chest against chest, Dick digging his fingers into the muscles in Tiger's back.

“You like this,” Tiger said quietly, kissing along Dick's jawline.

Dick squeezed him tighter. “I do. I like the closeness.”

“I will remember that.”

Dick grabbed his face and they shared a deep, slow kiss. Tiger's thrusts deepened and Dick gasped into the kiss.

“You like that, too,” Tiger murmured against his lips. Dick moaned in agreement. Their pace quickened, just a touch, just enough to bring them both closer to the edge. Touching, stroking, kissing, gasping.

Dick met Tiger's eyes to find them soft, warm, inviting. A shot of whiskey after a long day. He'd never looked at Dick like that before. Or maybe Dick just hadn't noticed.

Tiger's eyes fluttered shut with a groan. He was getting close. Dick shoved his tongue in the man's mouth, aching to touch him in every way he could. And he could. He could do anything, because Tiger wanted him. Tiger loved him. Whatever he'd hoped to find that first night he'd accepted Tiger's proposal, he certainly hadn't expected this.

Tiger came with Dick's name on his lips, and that alone was enough to push Dick just that tiny bit further, right into his own climax, cradled in Tiger's gentle arms.

They lay tangled together afterwards, Tiger only moving for a moment to get rid of the condom. Dick lay his head on the other man's chest, eyes closed but perfectly content with staying awake for the moment.

“Remember that night we left the windows open?” Dick asked, snuggling closer. Tiger was warm, and fuzzy.

“...yes?”

“Second round,” Dick clarified. “When we woke up. You almost said something to me.”

Tiger sighed. “I remember. I had hoped you didn't.”

“What were you going to say?”

“Something much nicer than you deserved.” There was no venom behind that. It was more of a half-assed evasion than anything serious.

“Do I deserve it now?”

Tiger absent-mindedly walked his fingers across Dick's ribcage. “Maybe.”

“Gonna tell me?”

Tiger muttered something Dick didn't quite catch.

“You'll have to speak up, sweetheart. I don't have Superman's ears.”

Tiger sighed. “I said, 'You are incredible.'”

“Aww.” Dick hid his face against Tiger's chest. “Don't look at me. I'm blushing.”

“You are not.”

“Come on.” Dick kissed the skin under his face and lifted his head to smirk up at Tiger. “You were so repressed back then that practically means 'I love you.'”

“...you may have a point.”

“I know. I win.”

“ _Ugh_.”

Dick kissed him, pressing their bodies flush together. They weren't quite ready for a second round, but he was happy with their closeness as it was right now.

“You are a pain in my ass, Dick Grayson,” Tiger said between kisses.

“But you love me anyway.”

“I do.”

“Besides, I think you're a bigger pain in _my_ ass, if you catch my drift.”

Tiger swatted his butt. “Less talking, more kissing.”

“Yes, sir.”

Dick was in love with the enemy. Bruce would have a fit if he knew. Spyral would have a fit if they knew. Helena... kind of knew already and didn't really care. But that was Helena.

When he had time, Dick resolved to figure out how he could do his job without having to lose Tiger in the end. He didn't have the greatest track record with relationships. He didn't want to add yet another failure to the tally.

Maybe Helena could help with that. If Dick could decide whether he could trust her. She was hard to read. She had certainly guided Spyral down gentler paths since she'd taken office, but Tiger had made it clear she was more of a figurehead than a real authority in the organisation. She had to answer to her superiors. But maybe, just maybe, she didn't quite agree with what her superiors wanted.

Tiger pinched his side. Dick had gotten distracted. He could feel Tiger's cock waking up underneath him, and that sent blood flowing right down to his.

“Up for round two?” Dick asked, wrapping his fingers around both their cocks together.

Tiger laced his fingers between Dick's and gave a few gentle tugs, sending jolts of pleasure into both their bodies. Dick took that as a yes.

Neither of them thought about much else for the rest of the day. And that suited them both just fine.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IT IS FINISHED. I'll no doubt write more DickTiger at some point, but I can never make guarantees of what I'm going to write or when. You'll see me in the tag again eventually. I can't seem to stay away.


End file.
